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JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

GOVERNOR OF CONNECTICUT, 1769-1784 

BY HIS GREAT-GREAT-GRANDSON 

JONATHAN TRUMBULL 



N ON- REFER ! 




aVMVAD ' a3S 



BOSTON 

LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY 

1919 



£"4 6 5 



Copyright, IQIQ, 
By Little, Brown, and Company 



All rights reserved 
Published, November, 1919 



OEC -9 1919 



THE -PLIMPTON-PS ESS 
NORWOODMASS-DS-A 



©CI,A535988 



PREFATORY NOTE 

THIS life of his great-great-grandfather was 
completed by my father before ill health pre- 
vented his attending to its final publication, and his 
death in May of this year made it impossible to 
consult him while reading the proof. 

E. M. T. 

September, 1919 



PREFACE 

SINCE the year 1849, when Isaac W. Stuart 
completed his "Life of Jonathan Trumbull, 
sen.", no attempt has been made to retell 
the story of that busy, useful and significant life. 
During the half century and more which has elapsed 
since Stuart's day, the history of the men and events 
of the American Revolution has been clarified by 
the lapse of time and by the labors of many able 
and scholarly historians, so that new views of the 
period have been adopted, leading to juster esti- 
mates of the times in which Governor Trumbull 
served his country and of the men of those times. 
Many documents which Stuart was obliged to consult 
in manuscript are now accessible in the form of well 
edited print; and some important documents which 
were unknown in his day have since come to light. 
Such a family history, too, as the recent genealogy 
of the Higley family by Mrs. Johnston throws new 
and important light on the family and personal 
traits of Governor Trumbull's mother; and the 
Reverend Edward Robinson's sketch of the 
descendants of William Robinson does equally 
important service in the case of Governor Trum- 
bull's wife. The statements which have recently 
appeared in print regarding Trumbull's connection 
with the Conway cabal, and regarding his feelings 



viii PREFACE 

towards Schuyler require, of course, careful investi- 
gation and treatment for which there was no neces- 
sity half a century ago. 

These, and many similar considerations con- 
stitute an apology for a new life of Connecticut's 
revolutionary governor. The apology would not 
be complete, however, if the writer should fail to 
confess that his undertaking is prompted, to a 
great degree, by a spirit of reverence for the memory 
of a worthy ancestor. Just for this reason, it has 
been the aim of the writer to avoid the extravagant 
eulogy which abounds in Stuart's work; to tell 
the story simply and impartially, and to search 
diligently for the truth in this long period of public 
service. The attempt has been made to let the 
life-story speak for the man, in the full conviction 
that in no other way can justice be done him. Rev- 
erence for his memory leads to the belief that in 
no other way would the man himself allow the 
story to be told if the telling were within his control. 



CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Preface v 

Chapter I. Ancestry — Early Surroundings — At Har- 
vard College I 

Chapter II. Harvard Graduate — Classmates and Col- 
lege Mates — Licensed Clergyman — Call to Church 
at Colchester — ■ Loss of his Elder Brother — Call 
Declined — • Beginning of Mercantile Career 15 

Chapter III. Home Affairs — Delegate to the General 

Assembly — Marriage — The Robinsons 23 

Chapter IV. Apprenticeship in Politics — Deputy — 
Speaker of the House of Representatives — Assistant 
— New and Stirring Times — Lieutenant-Colonel — 
Judge — Man of Business 3^ 

Chapter V. Public Duties — Ecclesiastical and Minor 
Matters — • Financial and Judicial Affairs — Capture 
of Louisburg — Massachusetts Boundary — Impor- 
tant Conferences 42 

Chapter VI. The Case of the Spanish Treasure Ship — 
Declines Appointment as Agent to London — Family 
and Home Affairs 55 

Chapter VII. Mercantile Affairs — Son Joseph in Lon- 
don — Difficulties there — New Firm — Continued 
Difficulties — Mercantile Failure 64 



X CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Chapter VIII. The Stamp Act — Letters of Joseph 
Trumbull from London — Connecticut's Opposition 
to the Act — Ingersoll Compelled to Resign — Stamp 
Act Congress — Governor Fitch takes the Oath — 
Trumbull and Others Refuse to Witness the Cere- 
mony — Trumbull Elected Deputy Governor — 
Pitkin Succeeds Fitch as Governor 73 

Chapter IX. Trumbull Elected Governor — The Poli- 
tical Parties in Connecticut — His Course Regard- 
ing Writs of Assistance — The Contest for Governor- 
ship — Campaign Literature 81 

Chapter X. Death of Trumbull's Mother — The 
Mohegan Case — Susquehanna Case — Embassy of 
William Samuel Johnson — His Correspondence with 
the Governors of Connecticut — Johnson's Action in 
the Susquehanna Case in London — Trumbull's 
Share in this Case 91 

Chapter XL Connecticut as Viewed in London — 
Johnson's Call on Lord Hillsborough — Petition 
Against Revenue Acts — Bishops in America — The 
Five Per Cent. Duty and the New London Affair — - 
The Duty Repealed — Trumbull's Views on British 
Policy and Colonial Independence 104 

Chapter XII. War-clouds — Committee of Correspon- 
dence — Excitement Increases — Town Meetings — 
Treatment of Tories — Francis Green — Abijah 
Willard — Captain Davis — Doctor Beebe — • Re- 
verend Samuel Peters — The Continental Congress 116 

Chapter XIII. 1775 — Trumbull at the Age of Sixty- 
five — Preparations for War — Extra Session of the 
General Assembly — Royal Measures to Prevent a 
Second Session of the Continental Congress — 
Trumbull's letter to the Earl of Dartmouth 133 



CONTENTS xi 

PAGE 

Chapter XIV. The Lexington Alarm — Embassy to 
General Gage — Treatment of the Ambassadors by 
Massachusetts — Differences Settled — Preparations 
for War 142 

Chapter XV. Ticonderoga — The Council of Safety — 
Powder for Bunker Hill — Correspondence with 
Washington — The First and Only Misunderstand- 
ing Between Washington and Trumbull — Sears's 
Raid — The Connecticut "Deserters" 153 

Chapter XVI. The Children of the Family — Joseph, 
the Commissary General — His Early Death — 
Jonathan and His Distinguished Services — David, 
the Home Worker — ■ John, the Soldier and Artist — 
Faith and Her Sad Death — Mary and Her Patriotic 
Husband 170 

Chapter XVII. Renewed Calls for Troops — The New 
York Expedition — ■ Washington's Acknowledgments 

— More Troops — The Governor's Proclamation — 
Independence — Governor Franklin a Prisoner — 
Row-galleys Sent to New York 179 

Chapter XVIII. Dark Days — Urgent Calls for Troops 

— Trumbull's Active Measures — Militia Regi- 
ments Despatched to New York — Demands of the 
Northern Army — r Trumbull's Relations to Schuyler 

— Supplies and Men Hurried Forward — Sectional 
Jealousies 194 

Chapter XIX. "The Times that Tried Men's Souls" — 
Difficulties in Filling Connecticut's Quota — Tryon's 
Raid on Danbury — Trumbull and the Conway 
Cabal — The Title "His Excellency" Distasteful 
to the Governor 207 

Chapter XX. Trumbull's Illness and Message to the 
General Assembly — Taxation — Regulating Acts — ■ 



xii CONTENTS 



Confederation — Relief for Valley Forge — Corres- 
pondence with Tryon — The Errand of the "Spy" — 
Death of Joseph Trumbull 222 

Chapter XXL The Wyoming Massacre — Battle of 
Rhode Island — Failure — The Governor's Com- 
ments — His Son a Volunteer — General Gates En- 
tertained at Hartford — Naval Successes — Bush- 
nell's Torpedo — Finances — Confederation Urged 
by Trumbull 235 

Chapter XXH. Scarcity of Provisions — Governor 
Tryon Again Threatens an Invasion — He Attacks 
New Haven, and Burns Fairfield and Norwalk — 
Arrest of William Samuel Johnson — His Release — 
Financial Affairs — Trumbull's Correspondence with 
Van der Capellan — His Plans for a History of the 
Revolution 247 

Chapter XXIII. Distressing Conditions of the Country 

— Financial Affairs and Measures — Calls on Con- 
necticut — Death of the Governor's Wife — French 
Hussars Quartered at Lebanon and Colchester — 
Governor Appointed to Supervise State Finances. . 259 

Chapter XXIV. Continued Gloom — Imprisonment of 
Colonel John Trumbull — His Release and Return — 
Continued Calls for Provisions for the Army — The 
Wethersfield Conference — The Governor and 
Council go to Danbury — The Yorktown Campaign 
— The Groton Massacre — The Surrender of Corn- 
wallis 272 

Chapter XXV. Need of Continued War-footing 

— Deane's Views — Measures for Defense — Plots 
Against the Governor — His Vindication — Final 
Decision of the Susquehanna Case — Subsequent 
Events in Wyoming 285 



CONTENTS xiii 

PAGE 

Chapter XXVI. Peace Negotiations — A Critical Period 
for America — Anti-federalism in Connecticut — 
Trumbull's Federalism — The Society of the Cincin- 
nati — Trumbull's Reply to Washington's Address — 
The Farewell Address of the Governor, and Its Recep- 
tion by the General Assembly 298 

Chapter XXVII. Governor Griswold Elected — Trum- 
bull in Private Life — Settlement for Eight Years' 
Services — His Own Retrospect • — His Pursuits in 
Private Life — Honors Bestowed upon Him — 
"Brother Jonathan" 317 

Chapter XXVIII. Continued Good Health — Sudden 
Illness — Death — His Pastor's Estimate of His 
Personal Character — Washington's Tribute — The 
Trumbull Tomb and Epitaph 333 

Bibliography 341 

Index 347 



JONATHAN TRUMBULL 



CHAPTER I 

ANCESTRY EARLY SURROUNDINGS AT 

HARVARD COLLEGE 

THE surnames Turnbull and Trumbull can 
only be presumptively traced to a Scotch 
peasant who appears on the official record 
in the year 13 15 as "Willielmo dicto TumebuU", 
to whom King Robert the Bruce grants "a reddendo 
of one broad arrow at the feast of the Assumption 
of the Virgin Mary." This appears to have been 
a grant of land in Philiphaugh, a short distance 
west of Rule Water, as a reward for saving the 
king from the attack of an infuriated bull in 
the forest of Callender, near Sterling. Together 
with this estate, a coat of arms was granted this 
peasant, with the device of three bulls' heads and 
a motto which in the hands of various branches 
of the family reads either Audaces fortuna juavt, 
Audaci fauet fortuna, or Fortuna favet audaci. 

It is interesting to read the story as Doctor John 
Leyden tells it with a poet's license, in his "Scenes 
of Infancy" after nearly five centuries had thrown 
their glamour over it: 



2 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

"Between red ezlarbanks, that frightful scowl, 

Fringed with grey hazel, roars the mining Roull; 

Where Turnbulls once, a race no power could awe, 

Lined the rough skirts of stormy Rubieslau. 

Bold was the chief from whom their line they drew. 

Whose nervous arm the furious bison slew, 

The bison, fiercest race of Scotia's breed, 

Whose bounding course outstripped the red deer's speed. 

By hunters chafed, encircled on the plain, 

He frowning shook his yellow lion mane. 

Spurned with black hoof in bursting rage the ground. 

And fiercely toss'd his moony horns around. 

On Scotia's lord he rush'd with lightning speed. 

Bent his strong neck to toss the startled steed; 

His arms robust the hardy hunter flung 

Around his bending horns, and upward wrung. 

With writhing force his neck retorted round, 

And roll'd the panting monster on the ground. 

Crushed with enormous strength his bony skull; 

And courtiers hailed the man who turned the bull." 

Thus the peasant becomes enrolled among the 
heroes of a nondescript mythology, of so recent a 
date that he has also been made the butt of ridicule. 
There is no doubt, however, that from him the once 
powerful Scottish clan of Turnbull took its origin, 
becoming famed for legitimate warfare, and later 
for border reiving and ruffianry in the days when 
the cry was steal or starve, with a strong preference 
for the former, in which the Turnbulls kept such 
good company as the Murrays, Jardines, Bells, 
Lindsays and others. As the clan grew more law- 
less it was found necessary to send armed forces to 
subdue it, by which summary process the Turnbulls, 
weakened by the attacks of rival clans, were finally 



ANCESTRT 3 

dispersed and broken up, their extinction as a 
clan probably dating from 1545, when twelve of 
their castles and two of their towns were destroyed 
by the English. Some of the survivors were scat- 
tered through England, and some remained on 
their native heath to the close of the seventeenth 
century, or longer. 

It is hardly probable that a distinct pedigree of 
Jonathan Trumbull will ever be traced showing his 
descent through all the generations from "the man 
who turned the bull" in or about the year 13 15. 
It can only be said, in the absence of all other clues 
to his origin, that the theory of his descent from the 
originator of the clan Turnbull is plausible. The 
corrupted spelling of the name is accounted for 
by the late Doctor J. Hammond Trumbull with 
the surmise that the Scotch pronunciation gave 
such prominence to the letter r that it first caught 
the ear of the scrivener, who in pursuance of the 
usual phonetic spelling of the surnames of the day 
wrote Trumbull for Turnbull, and even went further 
by spelling the last syllable b-l-e, as it is usually 
found in the English and American records of the 
sixteenth, seventeenth and first half of the eigh- 
teenth centuries. Scotchmen tell us that the name 
is spelled Turnbull and pronounced Trumbull to 
this day. 

To add to the plausibility of our theory, we shall 
find as his career develops that Governor Trum- 
bull was possessed of traits of character which are 
distinctively Scotch. His tenacity of purpose, his 
indomitable perseverance, his keen sense of duty, 



4 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

and the deeply devotional and religious spirit which 
animated and informed his whole career are so 
conspicuous and so Scottish that they seem to mark 
the man and his race. In his diplomacy, too, there 
is much that the Scotch would call "canny," though 
there is in his self-forgetfulness and in the breadth 
of his views much that emancipates him from the 
narrow significance of this term which it is so diffi- 
cult to acclimate in our own country. These lead- 
ing traits, so plainly marked in his life, were, of 
course, modified and adapted to conditions quite 
different from those in which they first took root 
in their native soil. Then, too, there were, no 
doubt, hereditary traits from the maternal side 
which modified the more stolid, hard-headed racial 
characteristics in a way to fit him for a career which 
called for alertness and promptness of action, in 
which he was never found lacking. 

Passing over the long hiatus in his pedigree from 
"Willielmo dicto Turnebull", we come to the year 
1635, at which time it is established by the re- 
searches of Mr. J. Henry Lea that one John Trumble, 
a cooper of Newcastle-on-Tyne, married Ellinor 
Chandler, and came to this country in 1639 with 
his wife and only surviving child John, an infant 
in arms. Cooper though he was, the first American 
Trumbull was town clerk and schoolmaster at 
Rowley, Massachusetts, where he settled upon his 
arrival. "The hurrying pen of the stripling", 
John Alden the pilgrim, also a cooper, showed a 
no more clerkly hand than did the pen of the cooper 
John Trumbull. By a singular chance it happened 



ANCESTRT 5 

some generations later that the Alden and Trum- 
bull blood mingled in the marriage of Governor 
Jonathan Trumbull and Faith Robinson. 

With a father who, besides being a cooper, was 
a schoolmaster and town clerk, we may infer that 
the educational advantages of the son John were 
unusual for the time. In due course of events, he 
married Deborah Jackson, and removed to Suffield, 
Connecticut, where four sons, named John, Joseph, 
Ammi and Benoni, were born to him. John was 
the grandfather of the lawyer-poet John Trum- 
bull, now chiefly remembered as the author of 
"McFingal"; Joseph was the father of Governor 
Jonathan Trumbull, whose life forms the subject 
of this biography; and Benoni was the grandfather 
of the Reverend Benjamin Trumbull, whose colonial 
history of Connecticut in two large volumes is 
still the standard for that period. 

Joseph, in whom as the father of Jonathan Trum- 
bull our interest centers, was born in 1678 at Suffield, 
where he passed the first twenty-five years of his 
life. Like the young men of his day he learned 
farming, and developed a tendency to trade which 
stood him in good stead later in life. In 1703 he 
removed to Simsbury, attracted thither, no doubt, 
by Mistress Hannah Higley, whom he married on 
August 31, 1704. Her lineage, passing as it does 
into that of Jonathan Trumbull, deserves at least 
passing notice. 

She was the daughter of John and Hannah 
(Drake) Higley, and was born at Simsbury on 
April 22, 1684. Her grandparents were Jonathan 



6 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

and Katherine (Brewster) Higley, the grandmother 
being "clearly of the ancient Brewster family of 
England to which belonged 'Elder' William Brew- 
ster of the Mayflower fame." ^ The story of the 
early days of Hannah Higley's father reads like a 
romance. Apprenticed to a glover in London at 
the age of fifteen, he was given by his hard task- 
master two days' notice of a whipping in store for 
him. Determined to free himself from such thral- 
dom, he secretly departed before the whipping 
fell due, and stowed himself away on board a vessel 
bound to America, at the risk of severe and cruel 
punishment under the laws then applying to appren- 
ticeships. Upon discovering himself to the captain 
of the vessel, he arranged, for his passage, to sell 
his services during his minority to any American 
settler who would pay a price satisfactory to the 
captain. Fortunately, the vessel was bound to 
Windsor, Connecticut, where she arrived some 
time in the year 1664, and young John Higley 
was then and there bound to the service of John 
Drake for a sum satisfactory to the captain. Seven 
years later he married the granddaughter of his 
former master, and became a man of note in Sims- 
bury, becoming a justice, a judge of the county 
court, a deputy to the General Assemby for many 
years, and captain of the Simsbury trainband. 
Hannah Drake, whom he married, was of the ancient 
and honorable Drake family of England which 
includes the sea-king, Sir Francis Drake. Her Amer- 
ican ancestry dates back to Dorchester, Massa- 

1 "The Higleys and Their Ancestry", by Mary Coffin Johnson. ^ 



ANCESTRT 7 

chusetts, in 1630, and her English ancestry to the 
Norman conquest, or earher. Her mother was 
Hannah Moore, a daughter of Deacon John Moore, 
a man of note in Dorchester, who came to Windsor 
with the Reverend John Warham, probably with 
the ill-fated expedition of 1635.^ 

Thus the children of Joseph Trumbull, through 
the Drakes and Moores, had by inheritance an 
earlier claim on New England and Connecticut soil 
than he himself had, and through the sterling blood 
of the Higleys, Brewsters, Drakes and Moores 
took on hereditary qualities which mingled well 
with those of the Trumbulls. 

The enterprising young couple did not remain 
long in Simsbury; for within a year from the time 
of their marriage, we find them at Lebanon, a town 
which had been recognized by the General As- 
sembly just five years before, and which in the 
same year of their arrival, 1705, had for the first 
time reached the dignity of taxation and represen- 
tation in the General Assembly. If Joseph Trum- 
bull cannot strictly be called one of the pioneers 
of Lebanon, he comes so near that distinction that 
it is safe to say that he shared in the inconven- 
iences, hardships and privations of the first settlers, 
and doubtless found work enough for his stalwart 
young arms in clearing the land of his first grant 
for cultivation. He made no mistake, however, 
in casting his lot with this new little community, 
for the soil proved rich and productive, and the 
location among the peaceful hills and valleys was 
charming and attractive. 

^ " The Higleys and Their Ancestry", by Mary Coffin Johnson. 



8 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

Here, in this same year, was born his eldest son 
Joseph, destined to a short career with a sad end- 
ing; for at the age of twenty-seven, on a foreign 
voyage in the interest of his father's growing busi- 
ness, he was lost at sea, leaving a widow with two 
daughters. Doubtless he had become, at this time, 
his father's right-hand man, and doubtless, too, 
much of the father's success and prosperity were 
due to this son. 

But the father's energy and confidence in his 
location and in his power to win his way laid the 
sure foundation of this success and prosperity. 
Some three years after settling in Lebanon he 
bought the homestead of the Reverend Joseph 
Parsons, the first minister of the town, mortgaging 
it — as an indication of small means and large 
faith for the time — for £340. Here, no doubt, 
in the first Lebanon parsonage, Jonathan Trum- 
bull, with whose career we are chiefly concerned, 
was born, on October 12, 1710. He appeared on 
the stage at the beginning of a peaceful and pros- 
perous time for the little colony of Connecticut 
and for the new and fast growing town of his birth. 
England, with Queen Anne on the throne, had so 
busied and satiated and sickened herself with war 
and conquest in the brilliant campaigns of Marl- 
borough that the American colonies appear to have 
been forgotten for the time ; at least, no such inter- 
ference as had been the rule during the last half 
of the previous century occurred. For fifty years 
this little colony had been engaged in a struggle 
to establish her rights under the charter of 1662; 



BIRTH — EARLT SURROUNDINGS 9 

and those rights, with some wrongs, were at last 
estabHshed by the absorption of New Haven, the 
downfall of Andros, the discomfiture of Fletcher, 
and something like a final decision regarding Con- 
necticut's boundaries, if we leave the South Sea 
out of the question. With the absorbing interest 
in home affairs diverting the Mother Country from 
active interference in the affairs of the American 
colonies at this time, the little communities of 
trading farmers composing the towns of Connecti- 
cut were left free, for the time being, to direct 
their own affairs in frequent town meetings, pro- 
prietors' meetings and patentees' meetings, with 
representation in, and appeal to, the General Court 
or Assembly when needed. 

One of the most active of these little communi- 
ties was Trumbull's native town and lifelong home. 
As a boy, in the intervals of study, .hoeing and 
feeding chickens and cattle, he heard, no doubt, 
much talk of boundary disputes, of church matters, 
of prices of farm produce and live stock, of the 
news, some months old, from England; and tried 
in a boy's way to understand it all. Here in 
Lebanon, too, the meetinghouse war was brewing; 
and here, too, as well as elsewhere, the Mohegan 
case was brewing, to cause him infinite labor and 
solicitude in the days of his governorship some 
sixty years later. 

Of schools, either public or private, we find no 
trace in Lebanon in the days of Trumbull's boy- 
hood. It is safe to say that the traditions of three 
generations on his father's side, and four generations 






lo JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

on his mother's side, made them both deeply con- 
scious of the importance of a good education for 
their son. And a good education they certainly 
gave him — as good as American facilities of the 
time afforded. After a course of such elementary 
studies as his parents could bestow, there is little 
or no doubt that he was grounded in sufficient 
Latin and Greek to fit him for college by the Rever- 
end Samuel Welles. Welles was then pastor of the 
village, and his house, fine for the times, with its 
quaint frescoes and handmade woodwork, still 
stands on Lebanon Green. 

If there were any exceptions to the rule of social 
equality which existed in the town at this time, 
one exception might be found in the case of this 
same Reverend Samuel Welles, whose aristocratic 
Boston connections had enabled him to build the 
handsomest house in Lebanon. After his tutorship 
to the boy Trumbull, he removed to Boston, where 
he occasionally met his former townsman, Joseph 
Trumbull, the father of his pupil, whose business 
as farmer and drover sometimes called him to that 
city. His recognition of the elder Trumbull was 
sometimes cold and sometimes altogether lacking, 
as, in his farmer's garb, the latter seemed an unfit 
acquaintance to introduce among the pastor's city 
friends. Pastor Welles made occasional visits to 
Lebanon, where he still retained some landed in- 
terests, and on one of these visits he met the elder 
Trumbull and cordially extended his hand to him. 
Retaliation then and there ensued, for Trumbull, 
refusing the proffered hand, said simply, "No, 



HARVARD COLLEGE ii 

sir; if you don't know me in Boston, I don't know 
you in Lebanon." ^ 

This story, said to be authentic, illustrates, too, 
the independence and social equality which existed 
in Lebanon in the days of Jonathan Trumbull's 
boyhood. The inhabitants were at this time prac- 
tically all freeholders and all farmers; they had 
possessed the land on equal terms, and each man 
felt himself as good as his neighbor; every in- 
habitant was well — perhaps sometimes too well — - 
acquainted with every other inhabitant, and social 
distinctions were practically unknown. It should 
be remembered that the formative period of Trum- 
bull's life was passed in the influence of such a 
community. Beyond the inspiring sight of the 
frequent evolutions of the trainband on Lebanon 
Green, the boy had little diversion in the midst of 
the practical, puritanical, and quietly strenuous 
life of the day. 

At the age of thirteen, he entered Harvard Col- 
lege, where his enrollment, according to the custom 
of the time, placed him twenty-eighth in social 
rank among the thirty-seven graduates of his class. ^ 
This order was established during the Freshman 
year, and there is little doubt that it was during 
this year that he got a taste, at least, of the social 
distinction which was so foreign to his native soil. 
This custom of enrolling, and probably of granting 
privileges to the students, according to rank, pre- 
vailed at Harvard for the first century and a quarter 

^ Hines, "Early Lebanon", p. 21. 

' Quinquennial Catalogue of Harvard University, 1900; p. 83, footnote. 



12 JONATHAN rkilMHlILL 

of its existence, :is it prevailed at Yale for sixty- 
five years, hut at last caused so much c()mi)laint, as 
the democratic sentiment of the country grew, 
that it gave place in 1772 to enrollment in alpha- 
heti(al order. A system, also, (|uite similar to the 
fagging system o( the higher I'aiglish schools, had 
nol altogether died out when 'IVumhuH entered 
JIarvard as a TVeshman. i'liere can he no douht 
thai I he spirit of this lad ol tiiirteen, reared in the 
free air ol Lc'hanon's soc iai t'(|ua!ity, rehelled against 
this lagging system and against the social distinc- 
tions which the |)lan ol enrollment created. M<>g- 
ging was si ill |)ul)li(ly administered to students,' 
imd was ])erhaps still preceded and followed hy 
prayer from the president of the college in Trum- 
hull's day, as in earlier ones. 'I'hese austerities 
and the formalities whi(h ruled at the time may 
liave given lo ihe young lad a lou(h ol homesick- 
ness, hii'd of disgust. Wi' have it on the authority 
of his son John, however, that he diligently pursued 
the studies of his course, and a((|uiie(l "a sound 
knowledge of ihe I lehrc^w, as well as ihe (irecrk and 
T.alin languages, and ol all the other studies ol 
the day", and hecame, "a dislinguished scholar."'- 

JMom tlu^ diaries of President heverett and of 
President Wadsworth, who siuHceded him (hiring 
Trumhull's couise at Harvard, we get some idea 
of ihi- studies |)uisued al ihe time. At morning 
prayiMs, each studenl of the three up|)er classes 

' ()iiiiiiiv's " History orii.iivaid University", vol. i, i). K/J. 
■'' Colonel Jolin I'limibiiirs " Aiitohiogiiipliy, Kiiniiiisccuccs and Letters", 
1841; |). 1. 



II.IRI .IRI) COl.LKCE 13 

w;is called upon (o riM(l :i verse oiM of (lie Old 
Testaineiit lioin the I lehrew into the (IreeU, (he 
l^'reshmen re;idin^ IVoin i'Ji|^lish iiih) (Ireek. !*resi- 
deiU W;i(lsw()r(h s(;i(es in his (ii;ny th;i( he ex- 
ponndird (he Sciiptmes (o (he sdidciUs, oiuc eleven, 
;in(l someriines eigh( 01 nine times in w week. In 
the re^nhii eimicnhnn, Tnlly, Virgil :ind the (Ireek 
Testament ()eeii|)ied lonr I (Ml days ol each week in 
the j'reshman year; rhetoric one mornini',, and the 
(iicek (.Kechism anodiei mornm^, wi(h dis()n(a- 
rions on kamns's Delinitions loi two m()rninj»;s 
toward the end of the year. 

I'he Sophomores "leeited" Loi;i( , (ontinned to 
"reciti" (he classical atidiois, I leeichooicrs Mele- 
tcma(a, and Wollehins's Divinity, wi(h moinin^ 
dispn(a(ions on Mondays and Tiiesdays. 

liie jnniors eon(imied lleeichoord's IVIelelema(a, 
Wollehins's l)ivini(y, and (he (wo niornnij' dis- 
|)ntations, adding Physics, l'!(hics, (ieo^raphy and 
IVle(aphysic s. 

The Seniors "reci(ed" Arithmetic ,( Jeomet ry and 
Astronomy, "^o ovei the Arts towards (he latter 
end ol {\\c yc-ar, Ames's Mednlla on Satnidays, 
and dis|)nte once* a week." 

Ihns it will he seen that a conrse at llaivard 
he^iimin^ in 1723 was a nnieh !iearer ap|)roaeh {^^ 
a conrse iit divinity than oni picscait academical 
eonrses allord. h shonld he added that (he llar- 
varcl stndies a( (his time" comprised a s|)ecial conrse 
in I lehrew eondneted by Jndah Mones, a converted 
jc^w, whose lectnres and exercises weic attended 
hy those npper classes on lonr days m the week. 



14 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

The atmosphere was distinctly religious, and 
early in his college course we find Trumbull giving 
indications of that deeply religious and devotional 
spirit which pervaded and informed his entire 
public and private life. In his Freshman year he 
became a member of a secret religious organiza- 
tion, whose simple Articles of Association may 
still be read, breathing a spirit of deep devotion 
and Christian charity. 



CHAPTER II 

HARVARD GRADUATE CLASSMATES AND COLLEGE 

MATES LICENSED CLERGYMAN — CALL TO CHURCH 

AT COLCHESTER LOSS OF HIS ELDER BROTHER — 

CALL DECLINED BEGINNING OF MERCANTILE 

CAREER 

IN 1727, at the age of seventeen, young 
Trumbull returned to Lebanon, a full-fledged 
Harvard graduate, with the then customary 
degree of a.m. In the still small, growing commu- 
nity of his native town, it is safe to say that he was, 
at the time, regarded as a wonder of learning; for 
Lebanon was then sending few, if any, of her young 
men to college; and a man of collegiate education 
had a marked distinction in such a town. He had 
acquired a knowledge of Latin, Greek and Hebrew, 
as we have seen, with finishing touches of divinity, 
geography, arithmetic, geometry and astronomy; 
and he had gained experiences and formed associa- 
tions which were, perhaps, even more important 
than all these studies. 

Notable among his classmates stands Thomas 
Hutchinson, destined for a career quite similar to 
Trumbull's in official positions, but diametrically 
opposite in political principles, and ending in the 
pathetic story of a ruined fortune and a life of 
exile. How far Hutchinson's rank of third in social 
standing by Harvard registration removed him 

IS 



i6 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

from free intercourse with Trumbull in his rank of 
twenty-eighth, or how congenial these two lads 
may have been to one another, it is impossible to 
say. It must be true, however, that the coterie 
of about one hundred and fifty undergraduates 
of the time should have been, during their college 
course, in much closer contact than the great bodies 
of undergraduates in our universities of to-day. 
Hutchinson was just a year younger than Trum- 
bull, so it is not necessary to regard the latter as 
an infant prodigy because he entered college at 
the age of thirteen, which, as far as can be ascer- 
tained, was about the average of Freshmen at the 
time. Another classmate, Benjamin Church, is 
erroneously supposed by Stuart to have been the 
Doctor Benjamin Church who in 1775 was con- 
victed of secret correspondence with the enemy, 
and was sent, by Washington, to Connecticut for 
safe keeping under the direction of the Governor 
and his Council of Safety. This Benjamin Church 
was of the class of 1754, and had probably never 
seen Governor Trumbull. 

It is a notable fact that all the other Harvard 
students of his time who attained much distinction 
were loyalists in Revolutionary times. In the class 
below him was Jonathan Belcher, afterwards Chief 
Justice of the Superior Court, and Lieutenant 
Governor of Nova Scotia, to which land his Tory 
principles compelled him to flee. In Belcher's 
class, too, we find Edmund Trowbridge, another 
Judge of the Superior Court of Massachusetts, a 
loyalist who, according to Sabine, was so favorably 



CLASSMATES 17 

regarded by his countrymen that he remained at 
home, unmolested, during the Revolution, In Trum- 
bull's Senior year, there appeared a Freshman of 
thirteen at Harvard, named Peter Oliver, whom 
any Senior might send on errands under the fagging 
system then prevailing, and who, forty-six years 
later, was Chief Justice of Massachusetts, and 
obliged to flee to Halifax on account of his loyalty 
to King George HI. This same Oliver is lampooned 
by John Trumbull in his " MacFingal. " His brother 
Andrew of Stamp Act fame was a Junior when 
Trumbull entered Harvard as a Freshman. An- 
other member of Oliver's class was Eliakim Hutchin- 
son of Boston, who, though he died in 1775, was 
well known to be a loyalist of high social standing, 
a member of the Council and Judge of one of the 
Courts of Massachusetts. In the same class we 
find Thomas Steele of Leicester, Massachusetts, a 
town clerk. Representative in the General Assem- 
bly, and Judge, standing in his class fourth in 
social rank, *'a man of high respectability of char- 
acter" who "possessed the confidence of his fellow 
citizens, though differing from them in political 
sentiments." ^ In this class, too, appears Josiah 
Edson, who, in the early days of the Revolution, 
gained the odious distinction of a "Rescinder" and 
"Mandamus Councillor", suffered mob violence, 
fled to Halifax, and died in New York in 1778. 
He also is mentioned in John Trumbull's "Mac- 
Fingal", as "that old simplicity of Edson." 

^ Sabine's " Biographical Sketches of Loyalists of the American Revolu- 
tion." 



i8 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

It would almost seem that in Trumbull's day 
at Harvard an influence prevailed which nearly 
a half century later bred Tories among the sons of 
Massachusetts and Whigs among the sons of Con- 
necticut. A few exceptions may be found, as in the 
case of Benjamin Kent, a classmate of Trumbull's, 
who is doubtless the man of that name who, with 
Samuel Adams and others, addressed the people 
of Boston in 1774 at the Old South Meetinghouse 
in favor of Committees of Correspondence. In 
the class below was Josiah Quincy, Senior, less 
noted than his son Josiah, but of whom it is re- 
corded that there was a plot against his life, and 
the life of Benjamin Kent.^ A notable Connecti- 
cut Whig in the class below Trumbull's was the 
Reverend Nathaniel Eells of Stonington, who, at 
an advanced age, marched with some of his parish- 
ioners to the front at the time of the Lexington 
alarm. 

Thus we find that of eleven Harvard students 
of Trumbull's day, including himself, seven be- 
came Massachusetts Tories, two Massachusetts 
Whigs and two Connecticut Whigs. The political 
sentiments which the other students espoused in 
the days of the Revolution are more difficult, per- 
haps impossible, to determine. Certain it is that 
of all the students of his day, identified and uni- 
dentified, Trumbull's political principles were of 
the most pronounced "Whig" character, and that 
the public offices which he occupied during the 
Revolution and the times which led to it enabled 

^Letters and Diary of John Rowe, Boston, 1903; p. 224. 



PREPARATION FOR THE MINISTRY 19 

him, as we shall see, to do yeoman's service in 
the cause of his country. The keynote of the Revo- 
lution, "no taxation without representation", must 
have been instilled in his youthful mind in his boy- 
hood days; for we learn from the official reports 
of the discomfited Governor Benjamin Fletcher 
that this cry was in the air in Connecticut as early 
as in the days of William and Mary; and we have 
seen, too, that Trumbull's native town of Lebanon 
was only admitted to representation in the General 
Assembly after presenting its grand list for taxa- 
tion by that body. This same question of taxa- 
tion with representation was doubtless discussed 
among the Harvard students of his day, and prob- 
ably the Tory and Whig principles which pronounce 
themselves nearly half a century later among the 
eleven students just enumerated were espoused by 
them at the time. 

Upon returning to his home at Lebanon, after 
completing his college course, it was decided that 
Trumbull should prepare for the ministry. This 
was, doubtless, his own choice, in view of the devo- 
tional and religious character of the young man. 
He united in full communion with the church at 
Lebanon, and commenced the study of divinity, 
in which his college course had already grounded 
him, with the Reverend Solomon Williams, his 
pastor, a man of prominence among the theolo- 
gians of his day, who, at a later time, became engaged 
in theological controversies with the Reverend An- 
drew Crosswell, a college mate of Trumbull's, and 
with the famous Doctor Jonathan Edwards, Senior. 



20 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

The course in divinity which Trumbull pursued was 
not, as we shall see, to bear fruit in the ministry, 
but that it bore some fruit we learn from the follow- 
ing well-authenticated story — a story which, when 
recently told to the Honorable James Bryce,^ im- 
pressed him as a remarkable instance of the social 
and religious conditions of the times. 

The favorite themes of discussion among the 
farm laborers of Lebanon — and Lebanon men were 
then practically all farm laborers — were of a theo- 
logical character. There were times when the 
subject was too profound, or provoked too heated 
controversies. At such times it was agreed among 
the disputants that subjects of this kind should 
be referred to Mr. Trumbull. In the haying season 
especially, during the noon rest, he would, either 
by request or by his own inclination, join the men, 
listen to the questions they had reserved for him, 
and give them his opinion from the light of his 
theological studies. The opinions so given by him 
were taken as conclusive, and caused, no doubt, 
deep satisfaction in the minds of the men who had 
reserved their questions for his decision. 

His studies in divinity appear to have occupied 
about three years, for on October 13, 1730, he 
received the license of the Windham Association, 
and the life and profession of a Congregational 
clergyman now opened before him.^ Not long 
after this, his brother Joseph sailed upon a voyage 

1 By Doctor George P. Fisher. 

2 Some of his sermons, in manuscript are in possession of the Connecticut 
Historical Society. 



A LICENSED CLERGTMAN 21 

to London in the interests of the growing business 
of his father, with which business the son Jonathan 
had also become somewhat famiHar. At about 
this time he received a call to become pastor of 
the church of Colchester. The absence of his brother 
caused him, no doubt, to defer the acceptance of 
this call, for his father was now a man of fifty- 
four, and needed the help of one son in the absence 
of the other. But no tidings came from the absent 
son or from the vessel in which he sailed, and as 
weeks of anxious waiting grew into months, the 
sad conclusion that he had been lost at sea was 
forced upon the family. With the younger brother, 
duty always came before inclination. He reluc- 
tantly declined the call to Colchester, and took 
the place of his elder brother, as the right-hand 
man of his stricken father. 

Thus the young clergyman of twenty-two be- 
came the young merchant farmer, embarking upon 
a career which he pursued with varying fortunes 
for more than thirty years in the midst of active 
public duties. The change from the ministry to a 
mercantile life was doubtless a sad disappointment 
to him, but his keen sense of duty did not allow 
him to hesitate, and his faculty for doing with 
his might whatever his hands found to do soon led 
him to forget his regrets by means of the whole- 
somest of all anodynes, hard work. Of the kind 
and conditions of this work it is difficult to speak 
with exactness. His father having embarked in 
foreign commerce in addition to, or in connection 
with, his farming, the office work, correspondence 



22 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

and more clerkly portions of the business naturally 
fell to the lot of the college-bred son. The father 
held at this time the military position of Quarter- 
master *'of the Troop in the county of Windham", 
a county of six years' standing, comprising eleven 
towns, which, at the time of its establishment, con- 
tained a regiment of troops. This position, no 
doubt, during the two years in which he held it, 
furnished quite an amount of business in addition 
to the regular routine and new enterprises in which 
he was engaged. 



CIIAI'TKR III 



iioivii' Ai'i'AiKS i)i;i,i;(;A I !•: ro riii' (.i;ni;kal 

ASSI'MIU.Y MARKIACI', I III, KOIUNSONS 

Till', old ri)igi;nn, "IVl;in |)r()i)<),srs Ixil (Jod 
disposes", was ni()s( liaj)|)ily rxnnplidcd 
in [Uv (liaiigc liom {he ( <)ini)arat ivc 
seclusion ol a ( Icagynian's life (o I lie inoiv active 
f)arti(i|)atioii in the ailairs of liis rellownien lo 
which rniinhull was now called. It was, as it 
had been since his hirth, still a time ol peace- and 
prosperity in the colony ol Connecticut. I he 
troubles atlending the location of new meeting- 
houses, and the formation ol new ecclesiastical 
societies in the various towns loimed the nearest 
a|)|)roac h to war whic h these peacclul times allorded. 
A truce of more: than thirty years had been 
declared in the Lebanon "meetinghouse war", so 
called, by an agreement between the existing l^ist 
Society and the- inhabitants of the norlhcin por- 
tion ol its |)aiish lo iclimd money which they had 
paid for church rates if they should within a given 
time be made a separate ecclesiastical society, as 
the southern j)ortion had already bcun made. In 
Guilford, however, a controversy involving the 
rejection of the SaybrooU Platform by a |)art ol the 
congregation of the First Society was :it its height 
at about this time, the cITorts ol the- (Icneial 
Assembly having, as usii;d in such cases, proved 

23 



24 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

fruitless in reconciling the differences. It is quite 
probable that the Reverend Solomon Williams 
found the Guilford troubles a useful object lesson 
in expounding theology to his young student. 

Church and State, we must remember, were prac- 
tically one in these days, and the attempted settle- 
ment of difficulties among existing church societies 
and the establishing of new societies formed a large 
and not always successful part of the business of 
the General Assembly. To such an extent was this 
legislative control carried that an important quali- 
fication for a legislator was a thorough knowledge 
of the theological tenets of the day, as embodied 
in the Cambridge platform, the Saybrook plat- 
form, the Halfway Covenant, and other accepted 
beliefs of the Congregational Church, together with 
a knowledge of the code of church government. 
We have seen how important these matters were 
in the case of the haymakers and others to whom 
our young theologian expounded the vexed ques- 
tions of the day. Thus, in 1733, the attention of 
the Lebanon freemen, when they were called to 
elect a new delegate to the General Assembly, 
was turned to young Jonathan Trumbull as a man 
well versed in theology and now, after some mer- 
cantile experience, conversant with the affairs of 
men as well. He was elected a delegate in this 
year, thus beginning a public career which he con- 
tinued almost uninterruptedly for half a century. 
In the following year, he failed of a reelection, 
if, indeed, he attempted one, and was succeeded by 
Ebenezer West, who by the political methods of 



COURTSHIP AND MARRIAGE 25 

the day, or otherwise, regained the position of dep- 
uty, of which he had been deprived in the previous 
year by the election of Trumbull. In 1736, William 
Throop, West's associate, gave place to Trumbull, 
from which date the record of his public service 
and offices is continuous up to the year 1783 when 
he declined the renomination for Governor. 

The years 1734 and 1735 were devoted, probably, 
to business, with some notable exceptions. We 
find him in the latter year commissioned as Lieu- 
tenant in the ''Troop of Horse", thus beginning 
his schooling in military life, an important factor 
in the public duties to which he was afterwards 
called. Far more important and far more en- 
grossing, no doubt, during this year and perhaps 
some previous years, was his courtship of Mistress 
Faith Robinson who was in the habit of coming 
from her home in Duxbury, Massachusetts, to 
visit her sister Mrs. Eliot, wife of Reverend Jacob 
Eliot, the pastor of Goshen parish in Lebanon. 
The courtship, which is said by some to have been 
due to a business visit of Trumbull's to Duxbury, 
and by others to have begun in an acquaintance at 
Lebanon, resulted in his marriage to Faith Robinson 
on December 9, 1 73 5 . The marriage was a happy and 
suitable one. She was then a girl of seventeen, of 
Mayflower stock on her mother's side, and descended 
from a great-grandfather Robinson who came to 
Dorchester in 1635 or 1636. Her Mayflower descent 
was from the pilgrim John Alden, whose daughter 
Elizabeth, born in 1625, married William Pabodie 
of Duxbury, December 26, 1644. Their daughter 



26 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

Priscilla married, December lo, 1679, Reverend 
Ichabod Wiswall of Duxbury, whose daughter 
Hannah married, January 31, 1705, or 1706, Rev- 
erend John Robinson, the father of Faith Robinson. 
As the marriage of Trumbull's father had given his 
children an earlier New England ancestry than 
his own, so the marriage of his son linked the family 
to a still earlier, and the earliest possible, ancestry 
of the kind. 

It seems necessary to correct the statement 
which has appeared in Stuart's Life of Trumbull 
and elsewhere that Faith Robinson was lineally 
descended from the Puritan leader, John Robinson 
of Leyden. Until this statement was carefully 
investigated by the Reverend Edward Robinson 
in 1859, it was a cherished belief in the Trumbull 
family and in some branches of the Robinson family. 
The investigation referred to has resulted in the 
discovery of a distinct family tradition traced to 
the father of Faith (Robinson) Trumbull, to the 
effect "that there was no connection between him 
and John Robinson of Leyden. " ^ 

At the time of her marriage with Trumbull, 
Faith Robinson had been motherless for thirteen 
years, her mother having been drowned at Nan- 
tasket Beach while on the passage from Duxbury 
to Boston in a small coasting vessel; her oldest 
sister, Mary, also perished in the same sad disaster. 
Thus, at the age of four. Faith was left to the care 

1" Memoir of the Reverend William Robinson . . . With Some Account 
of His Ancestors in this Country", by his son, Edward Robinson, N. Y., 1859; 
p. 62. 



THE ROBINSONS 27 

of an eccentric father and three older sisters, the 
eldest of whom was then fourteen. 

A wrong impression would be given of her father 
if we characterize him solely as eccentric. He was 
a man of marked ability as a preacher, being original 
and forceful in his treatment of his subjects. He 
had a keen sense of humor and sometimes a forcible 
way of expressing himself, as when, after applying 
for an increase in salary, he was reminded of a 
previous increase besides the improvement of some 
thirty acres of upland in Weechertown. " Weecher- 
town.^" said he, "thirty acres in Weechertown .f' 
Why, if you were to mow it with a razor and rake 
it with a fine-tooth comb, you wouldn't get enough 
from it to winter a grasshopper." For thirty years 
he continued his ministry in Duxbury, until at last 
dissensions arose in his flock, leading him to ask for 
a dismissal from his pastorate, after having obtained 
judgment against the parish for arrearages in the 
payment of his salary amounting to £412, los. 
6d. He then removed to Lebanon where two of his 
married daughters were living and where he bought 
of his son-in-law, Jonathan Trumbull, two tracts of 
land in Goshen parish. He died in Lebanon on 
November 14, 1745, at the age of seventy-four. 
The Boston Newsletter of the sixteenth of November 
contains a brief sketch of his life, closing with the 
following words: 

"He was a learned and sound Divine; laborious 
and faithful in his Master's Vineyard. In civil 
life he was just, generous, of a cheerful and pleasant 
Disposition, and a faithful Friend." 



28 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

To what extent the character and eccentricities of 
John Robinson were inherited by his daughter Faith 
it is, of course, impossible to say. Her mother was 
evidently a woman of fine character, deeply beloved 
by her husband and family, and esteemed most 
highly in the community. Her virtues were com- 
memorated in verse by the Reverend Nathaniel 
Pitcher of Scituate, who makes personal mention 
of her in the following quaint lines: 

"One of the Gowned Tribe and Family, 
Of bright descent and Worthy Pedigree; 
A charming daughter in our Israel, 
In vertuous acts and Deeds seen to excel; 
As Mother, Mistress, Neighbor, Wife, most rare; 
Should I exceed, to say beyond compare? 
Call her the Phoenix, yet you cannot lye. 
Whether it be in Prose or Poetry. 
For Meekness, Piety and Patience; 
Rare Modesty, Unwearied Diligence, 
For Gracious Temper, Prudent Conduct, too, 
How few of the fair sex could her outdo? 
Beloved of all while living, and now dead. 
The female Hadadrimmon's lost their head." 

The virtues of the mother were certainly re- 
produced in her daughter Faith. One of many 
instances of her faithful motherhood is found in 
her unremitting care of her son John in the critical 
days of his infancy, when, by her patient, long- 
continued care, she saved him from the effects of 
malformation of the skull, which, without her con- 
stant, unwearying attention would have resulted in 
early death or prolonged insanity.^ Thus it is that 

1 Colonel John Trumbull's "Autobiography, Reminiscences and Letters." 



HIS CHILDREN 29 

to her our country owes the brilliant career of Colo- 
nel John Trumbull, distinguished as a soldier and 
still more as a pioneer in American art, of whom 
more must be said as we follow the narrative of his 
father's life. That the mother inherited some of 
the more striking traits of her father we may learn 
later from her public contribution of her handsome 
scarlet cloak, the gift, it is said, of Rochambeau in 
the days of the Revolution,^ and from her brave, 
inspiring words to her son, when, as she believed, 
she was parting from him forever, as he left his 
home in Lebanon to join the army at Cambridge. ^ 

For forty-five years she shared the joys, cares 
and sorrows of her husband's life, during which 
time she faithfully reared a family of four sons and 
two daughters. These children were: 

JOSEPH, born March 11, 1737. He was the 
first commissary general of the Continental army, 
and died on July 23, 1778, from the cares, hard- 
ships and fatigues of this onerous position. He 
married Amelia Dyer, in March, 1777. 

JONATHAN, born March 26, 1740. He occupied 
the following positions: Deputy Paymaster-general, 
1775; first Comptroller of the Treasury, 1778; 
secretary and first aide to General Washington, 
1780; Representative in the first Congress of the 
United States under the Constitution, 1789; 
Speaker, House of Representatives, 1791; Senator, 
1794; Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut, 1796; 
Governor, 1798 to the time of his death, — Aug- 

^ Stuart's " Life of Jonathan Trumbull, Senior." 

^Colonel John Trumbull's "Autobiography, Reminiscences and Letters." 



30 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

ust 7, 1809. He married, March 16, 1767, Eunice 
Backus. 

FAITH, born January 25, 1743; married Colonel, 
afterwards General Jedediah Huntington. Her solic- 
itude for the safety of her husband and brothers 
brought on mental derangement, resulting in her 
death on November 24, 1775. 

MARY, born July 16, 1745; married February 
14, 1 771, William Williams, signer of the Declara- 
tion of Independence. She died February 9, 1831. 

DAVID, born February 5, 1752; married Sarah 
Backus. He was actively employed in the State 
commissary department and in special service 
during the Revolution. He died January 17, 1822. 

JOHN, born June 6, 1756; died November 10, 
1843. He married an English lady in London. He 
was second aide to Washington in 1775; Major 
of Brigade, 1776; Adjutant and Quartermaster- 
general with the rank of Colonel, 1777. He pursued 
the study of art from an early age and became noted 
principally as an historical painter. 

At the time of the marriage of Faith Robinson 
and Jonathan Trumbull the influence of the be- 
ginning of the Great Awakening had been felt in 
Connecticut. The solemn warnings of the great 
Jonathan Edwards had already been heard in 
Northampton, and had been echoed down the 
valley of the Connecticut, to be followed by the 
more exciting utterances of Whitefield, Tennent and 
Davenport in later years. Just how these warnings 
and this renewal of religious emotion, which at 
this time seemed dormant, affected young Trum- 



HIS CHILDREN 31 

bull's mind, we can only conjecture. That the 
situation awakened him to deep thought, perhaps 
to renewed devotion, there can be no doubt. But, 
so far as we can learn, his religious faith, like his 
political faith, was always active and needed no 
special awakening. To a man so liberal in his 
later views of toleration in religious matters and 
so imbued as he then and always was with the 
principles of political freedom, there can be no 
doubt that the Great Awakening which soon fol- 
lowed broadened and deepened his spiritual life 
and strengthened his well-grounded belief in the 
righteousness of liberty protected by law. 



CHAPTER IV 

APPRENTICESHIP IN POLITICS DEPUTY SPEAKER 

OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ASSISTANT 

NEW AND STIRRING TIMES LIEUTENANT-COLONEL 

JUDGE MAN OF BUSINESS 

IN the October session of 1736, Trumbull re- 
sumed what we may call his apprenticeship 
in political life by taking again the position 
of deputy for Lebanon in the General Assembly 
of Connecticut. Evidences are not lacking that 
in these early years of his public life he paid scru- 
pulous attention to the duties of his position. Por- 
tions of his journal are still in existence, minutely 
recording the legislative proceedings of the time 
from the beginning of his first attendance. There 
is little in the journals which is of interest to the 
general reader, for the times were peaceful, and 
the record is purely official, being almost a duplica- 
tion of the printed records of the colony of Con- 
necticut for the time. Nothing appears to show his 
personal impressions or opinions on the questions 
before the house, the humdrum nature of which is 
so apparent as to leave little or no room for com- 
ment. The lack of personal opinions or impressions 
to be found in his journal and the few meager and 
inadequate reports of others regarding the personal 
appearance and character of the man leave much 
to be desired in the way of direct testimony. We 

32 



DEPUrr IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY 33 

shall learn from later descriptions by his enemies 
that his height was five feet, seven inches, and that 
he was alert and graceful in his movements. Even 
when he had reached an advanced age, this same 
minute attention to minor details, which his journal 
discloses, made him appear ludicrous to some of the 
noblemen of the gay court of Louis XVI, who de- 
scribe the Connecticut magistrate from the point 
of view of the French courtier visiting the America 
of Revolutionary days. 

On March 11, 1737, his son Joseph was born. 
With this beginning of the dignity of fatherhood, 
the dignity of special committee work in the General 
Assembly was also first assigned to him. The 
committee on which he was appointed was in- 
structed "to ascertain and fix a place" for erecting 
a meetinghouse in the New Concord Society of 
Norwich, now in Bozrah. It would seem that after 
the appointment of this committee the New Con- 
cord became the New Discord Society; for a re- 
appointment of the committee became necessary a 
year later, owing to the refusal of the owner to 
convey to the Society the land selected for the site 
of the meetinghouse; and upon the selection of 
another site, the Society petitioned for a change of 
location, which petition was, in the following year, 
referred to a new committee. Thus it will be seen 
that the first of Trumbull's numerous attempts at 
locating meetinghouses by direction of the General 
Assembly was not a successful one, though doubt- 
less it was fruitful in experience. Perhaps for this 
reason, upon the appointment of a new committee 



34 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

to settle the New Concord difficulties, he was im- 
mediately appointed on another committee to locate 
a meetinghouse in the North Parish of New London, 
which duty appears to have been performed on the 
first attempt. 

This was in 1739, in which year he was elected 
Speaker of the House of Representatives, having 
in the previous year occupied, for a short time, the 
position of Clerk. Thus the long political appren- 
ticeship which he was still serving showed marked 
progress in this year, in his election to this advanced 
position at the age of twenty-nine. It was with him 
a year of progress in all directions, for at the October 
session we find him commissioned Lieutenant Colonel 
of the Twelfth Regiment of the colony. At the 
May session, too, he received his second appoint- 
ment as "Justice of the Peace and Quorum in and 
for the county of Windham." 

In his home at Lebanon he appears at this time 
as one of the promoters of a library company which 
formed the nearest approach to a public library 
which the times afforded. It bore the classical and 
high-sounding title of the Philogrammatican Library, 
and its privileges were limited to the use of share- 
holders who contributed fifty pounds each. The 
records of this library are in Trumbull's handwriting, 
and show that the purchase of a record book con- 
sisting of three or four quires of paper, covered with 
parchment, was in those days a matter of sufficient 
importance to require the vote of the shareholders. 
The catalogue includes such titles as "Moody's 
Gospel Way of Escaping the Doleful State of the 



STIRRING TIMES 35 

Damned", with numerous other theological, his- 
torical, medical and legal works, the nearest ap- 
proach to light reading being "Lyrick Poems" by- 
some author now unknown. Among the share- 
holders associated with Trumbull are to be found 
Eleazer Wheelock, founder of Dartmouth College, 
Samuel Huntington, signer of the Declaration of 
Independence and afterwards Governor of Connec- 
ticut, Thomas Clap, President of Yale College, 
and others almost as notable. This library com- 
pany had an existence of more than half a century, 
and was finally dissolved in 1792. 

The year 1740 opened to our young legislator 
a new experience, for the peaceful times of his 
earlier membership in the General Assembly now 
gave place to a formally declared war with Spain, 
in which Connecticut was to bear her part. Here 
began his long schooling in those warlike measures 
which his colony and State of Connecticut was to 
pursue almost uninterruptedly for the rest of his 
life. The war with Spain was soon to merge itself 
into the war with France, hardly interrupted by 
the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1748, and ending 
only in the fall of Quebec in 1759 and of Montreal 
in the following year. 

During all these twenty years the little colony 
of Connecticut may be said to have kept herself 
on a war footing; and her soldiers were present in 
greater or smaller numbers in almost every engage- 
ment in these long wars. By the irony of fate, 
the very services of the colonies, which should have 
led the Mother Country to recognize Americans 



36 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

as brothers in race as well as brothers in arms, led, 
instead, to the War of the Revolution, the clouds 
of which began to gather soon after the war with 
France, which was not officially ended until the 
treaty of Paris in 1763. 

The first official announcement of the war with 
Spain came to Trumbull's ears, no doubt, as a new 
experience, in April, 1740, when the king's procla- 
mation was sent to the towns in Connecticut by 
order of the Governor. One thousand men were 
called for from New England for the expedition 
against the Spanish West Indies. At the special 
session of the General Assembly which was held in 
the following July, active preparations were made 
for coast defences against incursions of the enemy, 
and for sending forward the Connecticut volun- 
teers who had enlisted for the expedition to the 
West Indies. A special issue of £4000 was made for 
the payment of bounties to volunteers in this ex- 
pedition. The colony, with its usual businesslike 
and statesmanlike promptness, entered at once into 
all the details needed for this sudden call. 

This special session in July marks another im- 
portant advance in Trumbull's political life; for 
we find him now on record for the first time as one 
of the twelve Assistants of the Colony, who, with 
the Deputy Governor, composed the Governor's 
council. Notwithstanding the bicameral system 
which had prevailed in the General Assembly since 
1698, this was a council in fact as well as in name, 
and gave its members the most intimate relations 
with the administrative affairs of the colony. 



ASSISTANT 37 

To Trumbull, as a legislator and member of the 
Governor's Council, as a military man, and as a 
man of business, the warlike aspect of affairs bore 
a threefold significance. We may be sure that with 
him personal considerations came last, important 
though they were, for his numerous coastwise and 
foreign shipments were in danger of seizure by 
armed vessels of the enemy, and his mercantile 
interests at home and abroad were rendered in- 
secure by the troublous times now beginning. 
Rumors of Spanish war vessels cruising off the 
harbor of New London and other Connecticut 
ports were rife; and Connecticut sailors and soldiers 
were joining the ill-fated expedition to the West 
Indies from which but one in ten returned. 

Just what his public duties were at this time, 
beyond his assignments on committees, it is im- 
possible to learn. The sessions of the General 
Assembly during the year 1740 were three in number 
and the regular sessions unusually long. We find 
him on a committee to investigate fraudulent 
transfers of real estate, and we find him in con- 
stant attendance as Deputy in May, and Assistant 
in July and October. The year, too, was one of 
both loss and gain in his family circle. The birth 
of his son Jonathan on the twenty-sixth of March 
was followed by the death, by drowning, of his only 
remaining brother, David, on the ninth of July, 
at the age of seventeen, thus completing the sad 
and fateful record of death by drowning of all the 
sons of his father's house excepting himself. 

The position of Assistant to which he was elected 



38 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

at the May session in 1740 was occupied by him 
until 1752, when he was again made Speaker of 
the House of Representatives, resuming the posi- 
tion of Assistant in 1754, from which time he held 
this office continuously until his election as Deputy 
Governor in 1766. In addition to these legislative 
duties, he held, for the twenty years beginning in 
1746, the position of a Judge of the County Court 
of Windham, being also Judge of Probate for the 
district for the twenty years beginning in 1747. 
In 1766 he was appointed Chief Judge of the Su- 
perior Courts of the colony, which position he held 
until his election as Governor in 1769. During all, 
or nearly all, this period of thirty years from 1740 
to 1769, he was actively engaged in business, be- 
coming a prosperous merchant, and trading not 
only with the principal cities on the American 
coast, but with the West Indies, Ireland, England 
and Mediterranean ports. In 1767, however, he 
met with reverses from which he never recovered, 
though he afterwards attempted various business 
enterprises in the hope of retrieving his fortunes. 

But all these experiences — political, judicial and 
mercantile — were needed to round out his prep- 
arations for the public life to which he was sub- 
sequently called in the times which tried men's 
souls through the eight dark years of the American 
Revolution. And through all this preparatory 
period, there is evidence of his scrupulous faithful- 
ness in his varied duties as legislator, judge, soldier 
and merchant. That he had a natural love for 
work, which grew and strengthened as he advanced 



MAN OF BUSINESS 39 

in life, is plainly shown by the testimony of others 
and by the growing number of increasingly impor- 
tant duties assigned to him. And we shall find in 
a brief review of his services in the General As- 
sembly that his business experience and judicial 
experience were freely drawn upon and put to 
good use, as was his knowledge of theology, which 
latter, as we have already surmised, had much to 
do with his first election as Deputy. 

It must be remembered that it was in the atmos- 
phere and influences which surrounded him from 
1740 to 1767 that his most formative experiences 
may be found. The problems which confronted 
the little colony of Connecticut were many, and 
the experience of the legislators in solving them 
was a new one. The principles of democratic govern- 
ment were now tested as they had never been 
tested in the peaceful generation which had pre- 
ceded that of 1740, and in the generations of the 
budding commonwealth of still more remote dates. 
Here was the problem of a new tenor and old tenor 
currency with its delusive issues of paper money 
which brought about an indebtedness of £131,000 
upon a tax valuation of £900,000 in 1744. Here, 
too, was the question of Connecticut's position in 
Franklin's plan of uniting the colonies, a plan which, 
however the wise philosopher and statesman might 
modify it, seemed to strike a death blow to those 
charter rights which Connecticut had been strug- 
gling for ninety long years to defend and maintain. 
Here, too, was the difficulty of untangling the mass 
of red tape in which the pompous officials of the 



40 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

Mother Country enveloped the claims of the colony 
to the remuneration which had been promised for 
expenditures in the war. 

All this and much more Trumbull saw, and in a 
large part of it he shared. He saw, too, his own 
Connecticut general, Lyman, ignored in the official 
reports of the battle of Lake George which was won 
through his bravery and generalship, and for which 
William Johnson of New York was made a baronet. 
The inefficiency and even imbecility of such com- 
manders as Webb, the Earl of Loudoun, and worst 
of all, if possible, Abercrombie, were most vividly 
brought to his notice, sometimes even in personal 
council with the men themselves, as when he served 
on a commission to accompany the Governor to 
Boston to confer with the Earl of Loudoun on war 
measures. On the other hand, the great Pitt and 
the chivalrous and brilliant Wolfe called forth his 
admiration from afar, so much so that he inserted 
in his journal a full copy of one of Pitt's letters 
regarding the need for prompt recruiting. 

So far as the records and muster rolls show, 
Trumbull's own regiment, the Twelfth, of which 
he was made Colonel in 1753, saw but little service 
in the war with France. At times men to the number 
of fifty or so were drafted or enlisted from the regi- 
ment for an indefinite term of service; and at one 
time two companies of the Twelfth saw service of 
fifteen or sixteen days "in the Alarm for the Relief 
of fort Wm. Henry And places Adjacent In the 
month of August 1757." None of these services 
called for the presence of Colonel Trumbull in the 



MAN OF BUSINESS 41 

field; but we find that the details of men and im- 
pressment of horses were made by his order; and 
the payrolls of various companies show that the 
money was received by the soldiers "from Col. 
Jonathan Trumble of Lebanon." 

By the time when his men were thus irregularly 
detached from his regiment for service, and long 
before this time, his position as member of the 
Governor's Council, as judge, and as legislator 
rendered his civil services so important that he 
could hardly have been spared, had he been called, 
for military service outside of his colony. His con- 
nection with military affairs was, however, so con- 
stant, that he became well versed in tactics, military 
usages and organization. It is fortunate, too, that 
the duties which kept him at home gave him a 
broader view of the stirring political life of the time 
than he could ever have gained in the narrower 
sphere of military campaigns. To a man of liberal 
education, keen perception, and unwearied devo- 
tion to duty, like himself, there was, in the active, 
many-sided life which he was pursuing at this time, 
a schooling for still higher duties which can hardly 
be overestimated. Among his correspondents at 
this time were his Harvard classmate, Thomas 
Hutchinson, and his Harvard contemporary, Andrew 
Oliver. 



CHAPTER V 

PUBLIC DUTIES — ECCLESIASTICAL AND MINOR MAT- 
TERS FINANCIAL AND JUDICIAL AFFAIRS CAP- 
TURE OF LOUISBURG — MASSACHUSETTS BOUNDARY 
— IMPORTANT CONFERENCES 

IT is to be regretted that the records of the 
General Assembly during Trumbull's career as 
Deputy and Assistant give us no intimation 
of the debates and discussions which took place 
either in the House of Representatives or in the 
Governor's Council. Even the very full and almost 
garrulous diary of Joshua Hempstead has little or 
nothing to say of the proceedings of the General 
Assembly of which he was frequently a member at 
about these times; so that it seems that for a long 
time during the eighteenth century, the sessions 
of the General Assembly in the old statehouses 
at Hartford and New Haven were behind closed 
doors, and the public were only permitted to know 
what was determined and accomplished by the 
legislators of the time, with no intimation as to the 
means by which results were brought about. Thus 
we must content ourselves with knowing what 
duties were assigned to and performed by the legis- 
lator in whose career we are chiefly concerned. 

These duties began to increase in number and 
importance from the time when he was first made 
Assistant in 1740. By special legislation this posi- 

42 



PUBLIC DUTIES 43 

tion gave him, in these stirring times, authority as 
a magistrate in certain cases; and the Governor's 
Council, of which he was now a member, was ex- 
pected to convene at times when the General As- 
sembly was not in session, and at such times to act 
upon any emergency which might arise. 

The record of the General Assembly shows that 
ecclesiastical affairs were often referred to him, 
either individually or as a member of a committee. 
As we have seen, he frequently located new meeting- 
houses; but other ecclesiastical matters more diffi- 
cult of adjustment also fell to his lot. Irregularities 
in the payment of the salaries of pastors were some- 
times complained of by the pastors to the General 
Assembly, with protests against receiving the de- 
preciated old tenor money in payment and still 
louder protests against receiving no money at all. 
Such cases it fell to his lot to arbitrate and adjust, 
as it also fell to his lot to investigate applications 
for forming new ecclesiastical societies and to at- 
tempt adjustments of differences in existing ones. 
In two or more instances he was instructed to as- 
sume the position of chairman of meetings of socie- 
ties called to discuss vexed questions. In 1741, too, 
we find him on a committee with Ebenezer Gay of 
Lebanon to thank the Reverend Solomon Williams 
for a sermon which he had preached to the General 
Assembly, — a duty regarded as more important 
and requiring more formality than would obtain 
in the present day, if the good old custom of preach- 
ing election sermons were still in existence. Al- 
though the adjustment of all these ecclesiastical 



44 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

matters often required tact as well as a knowledge 
of theology, such matters may be classed to-day 
among the minor duties which Trumbull was called 
upon to perform. 

In the same class may be placed numerous duties 
of a secular nature in connection with the financial 
and legal affairs of the colony, important though 
such affairs were. Among such duties entrusted 
to him were the revision of the laws of the colony 
and the task of preparing these laws for publica- 
tion. He was first appointed on a committee for 
the purpose in May, 1742, with Roger Wolcott and 
Thomas Fitch as associates. The revision of the 
laws and the preparation of the manuscript for 
the printer appears to have taken seven years; 
for it is not until 1749 that a special act of the 
General Assembly empowers Trumbull to buy "three 
hundred and sixty-six reams of proper paper" for 
printing this edition of the revised statutes of Con- 
necticut, for which purpose £2200 old tenor is 
placed in his hands, forming for us of the present 
time a problem as to the value of the paper and 
the value of old tenor money in 1749. 

One of the devices for floating the new tenor 
bills of credit at the time of their issue was to loan 
such portions of the issue as were not needed for 
immediate use. These loans were made to free- 
holders in the colony on bond and mortgage, and 
in many instances it became necessary to foreclose 
the mortgages. Not only in such foreclosure pro- 
ceedings was Trumbull made the agent of the 
colony, but as early as May, 1743, he was appointed 



PUBLIC DUTIES 45 

on a committee to receive and deliver to the Treas- 
urer "mortgages not released for the first emission 
of loan money, and to adjust loan accounts with the 
Treasurer." He was made still more familiar with 
the details of the colony's finances by frequent 
appointments on committees to audit the Treas- 
urer's accounts. After much experience in audit- 
ing, he was appointed in 1754 on a committee 
"to inquire into the state of the treasury, and en- 
deavor to bring the Treasurer's accounts into good 
form"; or, in other words, to establish a new and 
improved system of bookkeeping for the Treasurer. 
The first instance which the records show of a 
bill drawn and presumably introduced by Trum- 
bull is in the May session of 1743, at a time when 
France had already secretly joined in military 
operations with Spain, and was soon to become the 
open enemy of England by formal declaration of 
war. The bill is entitled, "An Act providing Relief 
against the evil and dangerous Designs of Foreig- 
ners and Suspected Persons." After reciting the 
dangers to which the colony is exposed from strangers 
"endeavoring to sow and spread false and dangerous 
doctrines of religion among us, to stir up discord 
among the people, to promote seditious designs 
against the government, to alienate and estrange 
the minds of the Indians from us, or to spy out our 
country", the bill goes on to enact that all suspected 
persons may be brought before the Governor, 
"and such other of the civil authority as his Honor 
shall think proper to call to his assistance", who 
shall examine such suspected persons, and take 



46 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

such measures as may be proper to prevent the 
dangers which may arise from them. 

This measure was passed, probably as the result 
of a report made to the General Assembly by James 
Wadsworth, Elihu Chauncey, John Ledyard and 
Joseph Blackleach, who had heard startling rumors 
regarding the influence which certain foreigners 
had exercised over the Indians, estranging them from 
the colonists. The mover of the act evidently suc- 
ceeded in making it broad enough to cover the case 
of the Indians, — and much more. 

It is probable that many other measures of which 
he was the originator were passed, for the drafts 
of reports of committees of which he was a member 
are frequently in his handwriting, and almost in- 
variably include a bill to be introduced to effect 
the purposes recommended by the committee. 

It appears that when he was sojourning in Boston, 
Trumbull did not forget that he was a member of 
the General Assembly of Connecticut, and that he 
was in honor bound to recognize service to his 
native colony in the neighboring colony of Massa- 
chusetts, as the following extract from the General 
Assembly of Connecticut in 1748 will show. 

"This Assembly being informed that Jonath. 
Trumble Esq"^, being in Boston when one Isaac 
Jones, who was suspected to have been counter- 
feiting the seven shillings bills of credit on this 
Colony, was seized by a person who was exposed to 
great danger in doing the same, did as a gratuity 
bestow on him the sum of eight pounds old tenour, 
supposing it proper to be done for the honor of his 



PUBLIC DUTIES 47 

government: In consideration whereof, the Treas- 
urer of this Colony is hereby ordered and directed 
to pay out of the publick treasury the aforesaid 
sum of eight pounds old tenour to the said Jonathan 
Trumble Esq'." 

It is difficult, if not impossible to draw a hard and 
fast line in his long membership in the General 
Assembly between what may be called the minor 
duties and the important duties which he was 
called upon to perform. The Indian affairs of the 
time were more or less perplexing, and gave rise 
eventually to a most important suit known as the 
Mohegan case, which remained in court for nearly 
seventy years, and with the details of which he 
became thoroughly familiar. Encroachments of the 
reservations at Stonington and Groton granted to 
the remnant of the once powerful Pequot tribe of 
Indians were also referred to him in 1747, 1749 and 
1750. 

In March, 1744, war was formally declared be- 
tween England and France. In the following May, 
military operations were rather prematurely begun 
in America. The French succeeded in capturing 
the blockhouse at Canso with its garrison of eighty 
men; but the English, with reinforcements from 
Boston, succeeded in holding the more important 
works at Annapolis. 

Early in the following year, Connecticut was 
invited to join in the "mad scheme" of Governor 
Shirley of Massachusetts for the capture of Louis- 
burg, the so-called Gibraltar of America, by an 
unaided colonial force. At the extra session of the 



48 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

General Assembly in February, 1745, Jonathan 
Trumbull and Elisha Williams were appointed to 
to go to Boston, to meet with commissioners from 
Massachusetts and other colonies, with power to 
arrange the details and preliminaries for the expe- 
dition on the part of Connecticut. They proceeded 
with all convenient speed, and returned at the ex- 
piration of nine days, for which service they were 
awarded thirty shillings per day, old tenor. This 
was doubtless the most important service which 
Trumbull had performed up to this time. Connec- 
ticut, with her usual promptness, had already pro- 
vided for the enlistment of five hundred men, and 
for the despatch of the colony's sloop. Defence; 
and the return of the commissioners from Boston 
soon resulted in the embarkation of this military 
and naval force, giving Connecticut the distinction 
of being one of the three colonies which contributed 
to this surprising success in the beginning of King 
George's War. 

In the following October, Trumbull was again 
busied in this affair by his appointment on a com- 
mittee to ascertain the cost to Connecticut of this 
expedition, for reimbursement by the Mother Coun- 
try; which reimbursement, after much red tape 
and repeated revisions of the account, was made four 
years later. The award was confined very strictly 
to the actual cost in money; and the home govern- 
ment appears to have avoided quite scrupulously 
any honorable mention of the service performed 
by Connecticut men. General Pepperrell was, in- 
deed, made a baronet, and Governor Shirley was 



CAPTURE OF LOUISBURG 49 

granted a commission; but General Roger Wolcott 
of Connecticut, who was second in command, was 
ignored. The humble petition of the colony for 
a share in the prize money resulting from the ex- 
pedition was also ignored; and Trumbull, who had 
an active share in preparing the accounts and the 
petition, saw the services of his colony treated with 
such parsimony that at the time he may have 
caught his first impressions of the mistaken colonial 
policy of Great Britain. 

From the time of the capture of Louisburg in 
1745, to the time of the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle 
in 1748, Connecticut contributed her full quota — 
and more — for the projected but abortive expedi- 
tions against Quebec and Crown Point, losing many 
men by sickness, if not by the bullets of the enemy. 
The peace of Aix-la-Chapelle found this colony, in 
common with the others, suffering more than her 
full share of the effects of the war. The drain upon 
her resources of all kinds had been serious. The 
young men who had gone to the front, many of 
them never to return, could ill be spared in such a 
colony as Connecticut was at this time; the treas- 
ury, too, was depleted, and instead of the progress 
which might have been made in peaceful times, the 
colony showed little or no advance in population 
and worse than no advance in every other respect. 
The peace was a nominal peace only, and sur- 
rendered all the advantages which had been gained 
on this continent by handing back to France the 
stronghold of Louisburg which Massachusetts, Con- 
necticut and New Hampshire had captured in the 



50 ^JONAIUAN rkUMHilLL 

masterstroke of the war, and leaving the boundaries 
of the Mn^h'sh and I'Vench in America as indefinite 
as tliey had been before the war. 

JOven before this nominal and ineffective peace, 
Comic( 1 i( III had on her hands a boundary (lisj)ute 
with her nei^lii)or Massachusetts, in which Trum- 
bull bore the part of leading commissioner for his 
own (olony by four dilferent appointments extend- 
ing over three years. It was the most important 
of the many boundary disputes of its kind, and 
afforded to the leading commissioner another rare 
opportunity to familiarize himself with the charter 
rights of Connecticut, and to gain experience in 
negotiations of the greatest interest to his colony. 
'Ihe story of the dispute is, briefly, as follows: 

In 1713, the towns of Woodstock, J'Jifield, Suffield 
and Somers had been transferred to the jurisdiction 
of Massachusetts, through a mistaken belief that 
they lay within the bounds of that colony, or might 
be taken by il as a final compromise of its claim. 
A very inade(|uate ( ()mj)ens;ition was made to 
Connecti( lit at the time by the grant of certain un- 
settled lands in Massachusetts which were finally 
sold for the benefit of Yale College for a sum ecpial 
to about ^2i;oo. These four towns had been so 
transferred without their consent and without royal 
confirmation of the transaction. After bearing the 
taxes and ecclesiastical control of Massachusetts 
for thirty-four years, they had recourse to the 
arbiter of i)olitical alfairs, the town meeting; and 
addressed a i)etition to the (Jeneral Assembly of 
Connecticut in May, 1747, lor relief through a 



MJSSJCI/USI^TTS JiOUND/IRT q, 

joint commission or odurwisc to (IcUrmiiu- ihcir 
loc.'ition by (li;irtcr ri^lits, wliicli, iis llicy jiisily 
(•|;iiiiu-(l, pl.Kfd tlu'in wilhiii tlic jiirisdii i ion ol lluir 
oti^iiKil (olony. (011:11 Ii;im Ti iinihiill, jolin Miilklcy, 
Colonel Men jiiiniii Ihill iind (';i|)l;iiii Rojui WoUott 
were ;i|)|)oiiilc(l "( 'onnnissioiicis (o iiucl jiid (onlcr 
willi such ;i.s m;iy hr ;i|)|)oiii(((l hy (lie Tioviiice 
ol Miissiicluiscl Is li.iy, .11 siK li (iinc :in<l phuc ns 
sli;dl he agreed on hclwecn ihcm, (o \n:\\\ (onsidcr, 
.'ind icpoil (o llic ncxl Asseinhly ;dlci said nicclin^^ 
and (onlciciu e, (heir opinion on wh;il sh.dl he 
ollcred in this ;dl;iir hy ihe C'onnnissioners ol said 
Province ;nid the inhahitants of said towns." 

I'hat these (onnjiissionc is had no dillKully in 
hearing what was "ollered in this allair" hy the 
said towns a|)|)cars (crtain. I hat they were c(pially 
successlul with ( oinniissioners of Massachusetts does 
not ai)pear; lor at the October session ol 1747, it 
is recorded that Woodstock, I'-nlield, SuKieid and 
Soniers prcleireci another petition to the (ieneial 
Assembly ol Connecticut, which recites that they 
had also petitio?ied to the (ieneial Assembly of 
Massachusetts lor icliel, and had loiind none-, riiini- 
bull is aj^ain appointed at the head of a commission 
to collier with Massachusetts and undertake a peacc-- 
able settlement of the vexed cpiestion. The matter 
dra^s aloii^^ until May, I74<;, when he is once- inoie 
instniclccl to atlcin|)t similar nc-gotiations, and this 
time j)rovision is macle lor submit tin^'^ the cpiestion 
to his Majesty in case nothinj.^ can hv. done- with 
IVlassachusetts, a course hithc-rto avoided, through 
fear ol its consecpienc cs, whic ii Tear had led to the 



52 JON/iriUN TRUMBULL 

unfortunate coinprouiisc ol 1713. I>ut, in order to 
cut tlic (ior(li;iii knot ;in(l strcni^thcn tlic iKinds of 
tfic (ofurnissioncrs, it is cfKKtcd aX the s;nnc time 
X\vA\ these four towns are within tlie charter hinits 
of ('onnecticut, the (M agreement of 1713 hein^ 
null and void for tliis reason. 

Once mote, in October, I7'50, he was aj)f)ointed 
to atteiripl an arnicahle adjustment, Massac fujsetts 
heinj', tlicai more approac liahle ; hut nothing eoulcl 
he; done:, and after conlimnn^ the: ( ont rovc:rsy wit h 
inc ictasin^ feehleness and at longer intervals, Mass- 
ac Inisetts a|)i)c:ars to liave clroj)()ed it in 1H04. Her 
claim was founded on an c)ld rx parir survc;y made 
l)y Woodward and Saffrc:y in 1642; one of the 
results of which is the: possession hy Massacfiu- 
sc;tts c)f the- present city of S|)rin^field which once 
l)c:loii;4ed to ( 'omiec t ic ul. An ii^^ly ncjtc h in the 
northern hoimdary of Connecticut still remains a 
monument to t he surveyors of 1642. 

In October, i75.S» '''<" f<»<)thold of the Kn^lish 
in Ne>va Scotia, after rmic h horder skirmishing and 
many attempts to J^'.ain the: alle^^ianec; of the Ac aclians 
tc) British rule, had he-en elh-e ted hy the: c rushir)^ 
decree of exile proc laimc-d at (irand I'le- in the: 
Se|)tend)er prc;vious, hy which seven tlH)usanel of 
these uidortunates were scattc-red amoji^ strarij^ers 
in a stianjM- land, in the |)ic-vious July, liraddock's 
disastrous defeat liael occurred, compensated in a 
measure hy Lyman's hrilliant victory at Lake 
( leor^^c:, for which, as wc- have seen, (Jeneral John- 
son was made Sir William. Once more the "do^s 
of wai ' weic- lei loose, allhou;di the: ceremony ol 



IMrORTylNT CONFKRKNCKS 



53 



letting tlicm loose w;is not proclaimed until llii- 
following y^-"- I !'<-" Albany Congress liad iiiiicd 
Connc'ctii lit assisting cllcctivcly in I he lailiiic- lo 
unite the colonies under a tential ^overnnunl ; 
but Connecticut was none the less wiilin|i; to unite 
in a (orunion cause vvilii (he (olonics ioi dclcnse 
against the (onunon eneniy. I'oi (his |)ui|)ose, in 
October, I7S5, tbe (icneral Assembly a|)|)oinle(l 
"l'J)ene/ei Silliman and Jonathan riund)nll lor 
and on the behail of this Colony to meet with such 
Commissioners as shall be- appointed by his Ma- 
jesty's other ^overmnent . . . tc> consider and 
rei)!esent the general state and c iic umstanc i\s ol his 
IVl a jesty's Colonies, the encroachments ol the I'rench, 
and the va! ions t ransac t ions ;md o|)c r;it ions hit iiei lo, 
and \i) coiisiill the pio|)cr measures to be taken 
for the i^eneral iiiteiest ol the common cause, lor 
his Majesty's service" 

(iovernor I'itch accom|)anied the two commis- 
sioners to this coulciencc-, wliicii was held in New 
York in the lollowin^ December, and lesiilted in 
ad()j)tin^ a |)lan ol operations lor the coming yt'-" 
practically the s;uiie as lli:it ol the year then closin|i[. 
It is inleresliii|^ to know lli;il at this lime ( 'oii- 
nccticut had in active service in the- lieid 3<;75 men, 
as we learn from |)ul)lic- records signed by rrmn- 
biill, and that 3075 of these men were in the pay ol 
the colony. 

I'lom this time forward, he was continually 
appointed on commissions in connection with war 
measures. In jamiaiy, 17"^^, will) (ieiici;il I'hineas 
Lyman he went to Koston to aiian^e, il |)ossible, 



54 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

that Connecticut troops for the winter campaign 
be paid by the Crown. In the following January 
we find him on a commission with the Governor 
and others to confer with the incompetent Earl of 
Loudoun regarding the coming campaign; again 
in October to confer with commissioners from other 
colonies on war measures, and again in March, 
1758, on a similar commission held at Hartford. 



CHAPTER VI 

THE CASE OF THE SPANISH TREASURE SHIP DE- 
CLINES APPOINTMENT AS AGENT TO LONDON 

FAMILY AND HOME AFFAIRS 

THE foregoing examples of the duties which 
Trumbull performed are by no means an 
enumeration of all that were assigned to 
him up to 1758. With one exception they must serve 
to show the nature and variety of those duties: that 
exception is the case of the Spanish snow San Jose 
y Santa Elena, a vessel which, after springing a 
leak at sea, put in at New London in distress, on 
November 26, 1752, suffering further damage by 
striking on a reef just before reaching the harbor. 
Thirty-seven chests of Spanish dollars and three 
chests of Spanish gold coins, mostly "doubleloons", 
as a contemporary account calls them, were landed 
on the Sunday of the accident, and placed in Colonel 
Gurdon Saltonstall's cellar. The vessel being de- 
clared unseaworthy, the entire cargo, in which in- 
digo appears to be the most notable commodity, 
was landed soon afterwards, in charge of Mr. Hull, 
His Majesty's Collector of Customs. A conflict 
of authority between Mr. Hull, acting under the 
orders of a court of admiralty, and Colonel Salton- 
stall, acting under the orders of the Governor, 
occurred a month later, in which the constable had 
some difficulty in preventing bloodshed between 
the armed forces of each party. 

55 



56 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

The ship Nebuchadnezzar was chartered by the 
supercargo, Don Jose Miguel de San Juan, to trans- 
port the cargo and treasure to Cadiz, and duly 
appeared at New London in April, 1753, for that 
purpose. Upon beginning to reload the cargo, 
it was found that it had been tampered with, and 
that some of the treasure and some of the indigo 
were missing. Don Jose Miguel de San Juan there- 
upon refused to receive any more of the cargo, 
and in the following October presented a petition 
to the General Assembly praying for relief, and 
requesting that the portion of the cargo already 
loaded be relanded and placed in the custody of 
Collector Hull. This petition was not granted, the 
General Assembly of Connecticut having no juris- 
diction over His Majesty's Collector of Customs; 
and the affair dragged along another year, by which 
time it had begun to assume international impor- 
tance. It was finally arranged that Jonathan 
Trumbull and Roger Wolcott, Junior, should go to 
New London by appointment of the Governor, 
supervise the reshipment of the cargo and treasure, 
gather all the evidence and adjust the matter as 
well as possible. Accordingly, two years after the 
landing of the cargo, these two commissioners went 
to New London, for this purpose. 

This matter had now become still more com- 
plicated by the arrest and imprisonment of seven 
of the suspected thieves, who were indicted on the 
evidence of one of their number, and who escaped 
from jail within a month after their imprisonment, 
from which time history is silent regarding them. 



THE SPANISH TREASURE SHIP 57 

The duties of commissioners Trumbull and Wol- 
cott in this affair consumed a full month, begin- 
ning on December 3, 1754, and ending on the 
eighth of the following January. They attended 
scrupulously to the shipping of the cargo and treas- 
ure, consulted with the King's counsel in the affair, 
collected evidence, and after much diplomacy suc- 
ceeded in mollifying Don Jose Miguel de San Juan, 
as well as Captain Whitnell of the British man-of-war 
Triton which was to act as a convoy to the Neb- 
uchadnezzar. The conduct of the former gentleman 
is mentioned in the report of the commissioners as 
"in many respects very strange and extraordinary", 
and the latter is mentioned in Trumbull's diary as 
"dissatisfied with the treatment he had received", 
although "after some conversation he seemed more 
easy", and invited the commissioners to dine with 
him on the following day on board the Triton. 

Two reports of the doings of the commissioners, 
the evidence collected, and the history of the affair 
were submitted to the General Assembly, showing 
quite plainly that the colony was in no way liable 
for the losses incurred. These reports were trans- 
mitted to the home government which had become 
quite concerned regarding the international bear- 
ings of the affair; and it is not until May, 1756, 
that we find the last mention of it in official 
correspondence; and even two years later, Jared 
Ingersoll, agent of Connecticut at London, was 
specifically instructed to represent the matter in a 
favorable light, if occasion should require. In home 
politics, too, it had its effect, being used as polit- 



58 fONATU/lN TRUMlUfLL 

ical capital hy llic (jj)i)()ncnts <ji" (jovcrnor Wolcott, 
on x\\i\ ground lliat during his adiriinistrntion he 
h;i(l not j)ro( ceded vvilh due jjroniptness and vigilance 
in I he ni;itter. 

Ahhoii^h we ;jre mainly concerned witli the 
manifold |)nl)li( duties whi(li riund)ull |)er- 
formed hy aj)j)ointment, we shall hardly learn the 
full trust and (onfidence which was reposed in him 
unless hriel mention is made ol one ap|)ointment 
hy the (General Assemhiy whidi, thouj^h twice 
offered him within two years, he declined to accept. 
This was his a|)|)ointment as a^^ent at London for 
Connecticut, and is helieved to he the only in- 
stance of a puhlic duty wliic h he declined to per- 
form. I'he first aj)j)ointnient was in March, 1756, 
at which time his father had heen dead less than a 
year, his mother had reached the a^e of seventy- 
three, and his oldest son was hut nineteen years 
of aj!;e. In his letter declining the aj)pcjintment, 
he says: 

"I have carefully weighed the matter, and ac- 
knowledge my ol)li|;at ions in gratitude to serve 
my country in whatever lies in my i)()wer, consi- 
dering every relative duty; and as nothinji; hut a 
sense ol such ohli^ation to duty would he any in- 
ducement lor me to undertake that imj^ortant and 
arduous trust, so a sense of my own insuffic iency 
for that service i)leads my excuse; and when I 
consider the duties I owe to my TX'iiyiX mother, whose 
cle|)en(lenc e is ji^reatly uj)on me, and all the circ um- 
stances ol the case, 1 llnnk 1 may conclude that 1 
am not lu^dii^^ent oi undutilid when I decline the 



nEC/JNI':S LOIMPON .IC.ENCr V) 

service, and dtsiic llu- lion''' Asscnihly lo liiiii tlu-ii 
tlioughts on some otiui |)c'isoii." 

llj)on liis second ;i|)|)oiiiliueiU, in May, I7S<^, l<<^' 
dec lines in I lie lollowin^; words: 

"On serious and mil me consideration llial 
I have nol had (he small |)ox thai my peeidiar 
Ixulily dillicidlies leiidci my takin)_', it especially 
danj^eroiis, and that it is at all times hecjnen! m 
Ivondon the c iic nmslanc cs ol my family - I think 
it ht and leasonahle not to accept and nndeitake 
the im|)ortant Tiiisl ol an A|;ent lor this Colony 
at the C'oiiit olCireat Hiitain, nnto which, at this 
lime, yon have done me the honor ol an a|)point- 
ment. With a j^'iatclnl sense ol this Imthei ex- 
])ressioii ol yom conhdence, whieli I hope never to 
forfeit, and an humhie reliance on yom Candor and 
excuse, I shall ever pray for the jilessin^ and Direc- 
tion of the Almighty and all-wise ( ioci in yonr 
Counsels," 

Jarecl TngxMsoIl, of whom we liear fnrtlier in 
Slam|) Act times, was ap|)ointc-cl in his stead, and 
tlieie is no doid)l that (ioveinoi filch, who had 
some yeais hcloic declined a similai appointment, 
imdeistood and appicciated rrmnhnH's motives 
and reasons for declining much hettei than we, 
from a twentieth century j)oint ol view, ean under- 
stand thc-m. 

'I'rumbuH's father died on June \(), H^^^ ^t the 
age of seventy-seven. l*or some time |)revious to 
his death he ap|)ears to have retired from meicantile 
business, having i)robabIy dis|)<»sc'd of his vested 
interest in the business to his son, who a|)|)ears to 



6o JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

have been successful to such an extent that, eigh- 
teen years before his father's death, we find him 
conveying to his father-in-law land in Lebanon 
to the value of £1500. This was in 1737; and in 
1 741 he appears in business transactions as "Jona- 
than Trumble, trader." 

At the death of his father he inherited, subject 
to his mother's life interest, the family homestead, 
a lot of land on "Hog Plain", and twenty-two 
acres "in the rear of Dr. Williams' land", together 
with the personal property remaining after one 
third had been given to his mother. The value of 
this personal property which fell to his share was 
£924.13.6 old tenor, or £771.1.2 "lawful money", 
which will give us some idea of the values of the 
day. In addition to this property, he also inherited 
under his father's will a share in a mill on Pease's 
Brook. 

In 1756 the family had reached its maximum, 
and consisted of Trumbull, his wife and aged mother; 
the eldest son Joseph, who graduated from Har- 
vard College in that year; his brother Jonathan, 
a sophomore in the same college; his sister Faith, 
a girl of thirteen; Mary, a girl of eleven; David, 
a boy of four, and John, a baby born in June of 
that year. 

It is interesting to note that under the system 
of registration according to social rank which still 
prevailed at Harvard, the sons far outstripped the 
father, who, as we have seen, stood very near the 
bottom of the list in 1727. Less than thirty years 
gave the son Joseph the rank of second in 1756; 



FAMILY AFFAIRS 6i 

and two years later, the son Jonathan had at- 
tained the giddy social height of first in his class. 
How far this promotion of the sons above the father 
was a recognition of his own attainments and 
public position since his graduation it is impossible 
to say. It is, however, natural to suppose that 
Harvard watched the progress of her small family 
of sons quite closely at this time, and stood ready to 
grant to Trumbull's sons the fickle smiles of social 
honor which had been denied to the father who 
thirty years before had probably been regarded as 
a country bumpkin from a little Connecticut town. 

The son David was not to share in the honors 
which Harvard had to bestow some ten years 
later, as his father was unable to send him, but 
he was, no doubt, fully prepared for the college 
course at Nathan Tisdale's excellent school. 
When he had reached this age, the family for- 
tunes were at their lowest ebb, and bankruptcy 
was staring his father grimly in the face, so 
that the lad David must needs put his young 
hands to the plow or the pen, and become, as 
he long continued to be, his father's right-hand 
man. 

This school of Master Nathan Tisdale's of Leb- 
anon was one which the father had been active 
in founding in 1743, and had gained a reputation 
second to none in New England, ''unless", as 
Colonel John Trumbull remarks, "that of Master 
Moody in Newburyport, might, in the judgment 
of some, have the precedence. " ^ 

^ Colonel John Trumbull's "Autobiography, Reminiscences and Letters." 



62 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

The Indian school founded in Lebanon by the 
Reverend Eleazer Wheelock was in these days an 
institution in which Trumbull was interested, as 
we learn from his correspondence, and from the 
fact that in 1763 he was placed by the General 
Assembly on a committee authorized to draw on the 
Treasurer for the support of this school. Samson 
Occum, as is well known, was the most striking 
figure in the early history and the development of 
the school, which, through the aid and support 
of the Earl of Dartmouth, at last became Dart- 
mouth College in New Hampshire. 

Another Lebanon enterprise which engaged Trum- 
bull's attention at this time was the establishing of 
a "Fair and Markett to be put up and kept in the 
Town, at proper Times, with y^ Privileges and under 
such convenient and suitable Regulations agreeable 
thereto." ^ For this purpose he was appointed by 
vote of a town meeting of Lebanon to apply to 
the General Assembly in 1763. 

Among his papers a draft of a bill which he pre- 
sumably introduced for this purpose is to be found, 
but the records are silent regarding legislative ac- 
tion in the matter, so that we must take Trum- 
bull's biographer as our authority for the state- 
ment, supported probably by tradition, that such 
fairs and markets were established through his inter- 
vention, to the no small benefit of the town. It 
seems quite probable that no legislation was found 
to be needed, and that nothing in the laws of the 

* Copy of vote attested by William Williams, Town Clerk. In ms. col- 
lections of the Conn. Historical Society. 



HOME AFFAIRS 63 

colony at the time prevented the town from under- 
taking this enterprise without special legislation. 

That Trumbull's interest in his native town was 
most active at all times appears from various sources. 
In the early days of his public life he was one of 
the selectmen, and in later days we find him fre- 
quently called upon to exercise his functions as 
magistrate in various matters, such as licensing a 
house to be used for the purpose of inoculating 
a number of persons at a time, by the methods of 
the day for the prevention of smallpox. His sons, 
too, were active in the local affairs of Lebanon, and 
held various offices, David especially having been 
a "lister", constable and surveyor of highways. 



CHAPTER VII 

MERCANTILE AFFAIRS — SON JOSEPH IN LONDON — 

DIFFICULTIES THERE — NEW FIRM CONTINUED 

DIFFICULTIES MERCANTILE FAILURE 

IN 1760 Trumbull had reached the age of fifty, 
having occupied for many years the positions 
of Assistant in the General Assembly, Judge 
of the County Court, and Judge of Probate. His 
home interests had, as we have seen, grown on his 
hands, the mercantile business in which he was 
engaged having expanded both in home and foreign 
commerce. In Boston particularly we find him 
dealing with the firms of Bowdoin, Pitts and Flucker, 
Benjamin Dolbeare, Henry Johnson, Green and 
Walker and others, all of whom reposed such con- 
fidence in him that they left the affairs of an insol- 
vent debtor in Lebanon in his hands for settlement 
on their account unreservedly, at an earlier date. 
In London, his dealings with Samuel Sparrow had 
been large; but at the time we are now considering 
his principal London connection was with the firm 
of Booth and Lane. His connections with Ireland, 
the West Indies and other points were also worth 
mentioning. 

His first regularly established firm bore the name 
of Williams, Trumble and Pitkin, beginning about 
the year 1750 and continuing under this style for 
nearly fifteen years, after which a new partnership 
was formed under the name of Trumble, Fitch and 

64 



MERCANTILE AFFAIRS 65 

Trumble, the two junior members being Eleazer 
Fitch and Trumbull's eldest son, Joseph, who was, 
at the time of forming this new firm, in London 
attempting to promote his father's business enter- 
prises. This firm appears to have continued to 
struggle against obstacles and difficulties during the 
short period of its existence which ended in 1767. 

As early as in 1762, we find Trumbull's Boston 
creditors pressing for the payment of money due 
on book account and other obligations, which it 
seemed impossible for him to meet at the tim.e, 
owing to his large holdings of real estate, and the 
large amounts due him from various sources which 
he was unable to collect. Among his correspondence, 
too, we find many begging letters from his unfor- 
tunate friends and acquaintances and many ac- 
knowledgments of favors which he appears to have 
granted in response to their appeals. Financially 
the times were out of joint, for it was a time of 
contraction of the currency, — if it could be called 
a currency; a transformation from, old tenor values 
of about sixty shillings to the ounce of silver to 
new tenor values of about eight shillings. Under 
the system, or more properly custom, of long credits 
of the time, much of the money due Trumbull was 
doubtless in old tenor, and much that he owed was 
in new tenor. Thus, no doubt, the value of prop- 
erty,^ owned by him in the heyday of his pros- 
perity is not overstated by his biographer Stuart, 
if it be possible to reach such a thing as accurate 
values in such times of variation and fluctuation. 

^ £i8,cxx). Stuart's "Life of Jonathan Trumbull", p. 73. 



66 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

During the war, in 1761, he had entered into 
some large contracts for supplying the troops of 
Connecticut with clothing and provisions. In this 
undertaking he associated with himself Hezekiah 
Huntington of Norwich, John Ledyard of Hartford, 
Eleazer Fitch of Windham, who afterwards became 
Trumbull's partner, and William Williams of Le- 
banon, who afterwards became his son-in-law. 

Owing to the state of trade at home and abroad, 
and the difficulties in foreign exchanges, the profits 
of the transaction proved to be small, especially 
when divided among the five sharers. 

The peace of Paris in 1763 brought hopes of a 
renewal of prosperity to the American colonists; 
a renewal sadly needed after the almost continual 
strain and drain of war for nearly twenty years. 
Early in this year, taking advantage of these 
promising conditions, the oldest son, Joseph, was 
sent to London for the purpose of extending the busi- 
ness of the firm in the Mother Country. This was 
a notable event in the history of the business in 
which his father was engaged, and, of course, a 
notable event in the personal history of this son, 
now twenty-six years old. After his arrival in 
London his correspondence with his father was quite 
voluminous, and being addressed personally, leaves 
the inference that just at this time the father was 
transacting business on his sole account, and that 
the firm of Williams, Trumble and Pitkin had been 
dissolved. At all events, as early as in November, 
1763, Joseph makes mention of his father's proposed 
partnership with ''Colonel [Eleazer] Fitch." 



SON JOSEPH IN LONDON 67 

Young Trumbull's business mission to England 
was beset with many difficulties, the principal of 
which appears to have been the refusal of the old 
correspondents of the house to grant further credit 
for goods to be bought by the son. We soon find 
him writing to his father urging him to borrow 
money at home for remittance to London. There 
appears to have been a contract of some kind at 
Marblehead, Massachusetts, for the shipment to 
London of goods of considerable value, which would 
assist materially in establishing the credit of Trum- 
bull in that city, but on January 10, 1764, young 
Trumbull writes regarding this to his father: 

"I received a letter from my Bro. giving me the 
disagreeable news of the Failure of the Contract 
at Marblehead which has entirely destroyed all 
my Schemes and Prospects of sending you any 
Goods this spring. Mess" Booth & Lane have 
refus'*' to furnish me with any Goods, & alledge 
for Reason that as their Partnership is almost out 
they are determined to bring their Affairs and 
Connections into as close a Compass as possible. 

"... This I look on only as an excuse to put 
me off, as I know they have engaged with Mr. 
Russell largely." 

Going on to speak of the impossibility of arrang- 
ing a credit with any other house on account of the 
failure of the Marblehead contract, he adds: 

"By the foregoing you will see that I must be 
in a very uneasy situation here — a Young Man in 
character of a Merchant in company with many of 
my countrymen all shipping goods, and not able 



68 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

to do anything but look on, an idle Spectator, and 
like by and by to return home and have it said, 
he has been to England to make acquaintances and 
connections, but was in so bad credit no one would 
make any engagements with him." 

"My Bro. says in his letter that you are deter- 
mined to collect your old Debts &c. — Indeed I 
think it high time for us to take care of ourselves 
rather than our Friends, by whom it seems we are 
brought to a very low ebb." 

This is, indeed, a rather pathetic situation for a 
young man going to London in 1763 with high hopes 
of success in establishing new and profitable busi- 
ness. There is no doubt, too, from what he writes, 
that colonial merchants without cash in hand were, 
at this time, usually accorded a cold reception by 
British merchants, who viewed the financial and 
political situation and business customs of the col- 
onists with much suspicion. But the young Leb- 
anon merchant did not relax his efforts. He had, 
certainly, a good friend and counsellor in Rich- 
ard Jackson, resident agent for Connecticut in 
England. And Joseph, too, though sadly harassed 
by the difficulties which he encountered, persis- 
tently kept up his efforts and manfully struggled 
on, until we find him, a month after the letter just 
quoted, writing that he had made some arrange- 
ments at Bristol with Stephen Apthorp for goods. 
He engages, too, with Edward Dixon of St. Kitts, 
to build in Connecticut a sloop of sixty tons for the 
West India trade, of which sloop Dixon is to own 
one third. A snow is also to be built for the Irish 



RETURN OF HIS SON 69 

trade, and by means of these and other vessels 
and the trade in which they are to engage, funds 
will be provided to meet obligations in London. 
Then, too, the Governor of Grenada, West Indies, 
makes young Trumbull's acquaintance, and a proj- 
ect is formed for framing and collecting materials 
for a government hospital at that island.^ 

All through this time, the proceedings of Parlia- 
ment were carefully watched and reported to his 
father by the young merchant; for on these pro- 
ceedings depended much of the mercantile interest 
of the colonies. Nor did he fail to see the sights 
of London and its vicinity, including the king and 
queen. Among other things, he busied himself at 
the herald's office, where his researches led him to 
adopt the present spelling of his surname, which 
was also adopted by his father soon after the son's 
return. 

In the fall of 1764, the son returns, having been 
absent for about a year, and having, in the face 
of many difficulties, succeeded in purchasing goods 
from Champion and Haley to the value of about 
£1200 on nine months' credit, and of Stephen Ap- 
thorp to the value of about £1000, on six months' 
credit, besides which arrangements had been made 
for other business both in Ireland and England, the 
West Indies and elsewhere. 

On his return he took up his abode in Norwich, 
where, no doubt, he superintended the building and 

^On May 25, 1764, he writes: "The disappointment I have met with from 
Mr. Lane has not discouraged or disheartened me, but rather served to en- 
courage me, and at the same time make me cautious." 



70 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

fitting out of the sloop in which Edward Dixon of 
St. Kitts was to have an interest, and the building 
of the snow for the Irish trade. 

Within two years from the time of Joseph Trum- 
bull's return, matters have an ominous look in the 
business of Trumbull, Fitch and Trumbull. The 
Stamp Act disturbances of 1765 had, of course, 
unsettled business in the colonies. Collections, 
especially of such debts as were due the firm and its 
individual members, were difficult, and in many 
cases impossible. It appears that in 1766 the firm 
was in liquidation, if not regularly dissolved, for 
on October 6th of that year we find young Jonathan 
Trumbull writing to his father that trouble is brew- 
ing in Boston, and urging settlement of his father's 
partnership accounts and "vigorous collection of 
debts due." 

It must have been at this time that the business 
of Trumbull began to take on an appearance of 
hopeless failure. He appears to have been a large 
landholder in Lebanon, Torrington and elsewhere, 
but at this time land was with difficulty convertible 
into ready money; and in less than a year a public 
or private sale of the Trumbull real estate for the 
benefit of his creditors was seriously discussed. 

There may be slight authority for taking the 
dramatic view of this failure which has been taken, 
and for making the case a parallel, to some extent, 
with Shakespeare's "Merchant of Venice." True 
it is that Trumbull's son John, in his autobiography 
written at the age of eighty-four, says: 

"About this time, when I was nine or ten years 



FINANCIAL DIFFICULTIES 71 

old, my father's mercantile failure took place. . . . 
In one season, almost every vessel, and all the 
property he had upon the ocean, was swept away, 
and he was a poor man at so late a period in his 
life, as left no hope of retrieving his affairs." 

This was an old man's recollection of a boy's 
impression of the family disaster, and hardly seems 
borne out by the facts. In the first place we find 
that Trumbull was always careful to effect marine 
insurance, even on small coastwise shipments from 
Boston to Norwich. In his letters to his London 
creditors he mentions the loss of but one vessel, 
which partly owing to the bankruptcy of one of the 
insurers resulted in a loss of £630 over and above 
the marine insurance effected. The fact remains 
that his attempts to meet the claims of his London 
creditors by shipments, freights and the sale of 
vessels resulted badly. He appears to have been 
willing to meet a loss on these transactions, as we 
learn by the following letter, written probably to 
Lane, Booth & Frazier on the ist of July, 1768. 

"In order [to promote trade^ laid out for build- 
ing a small Ship of about 160 Tons to lade Freight 
to Ireland with Flaxseed, here or in England to 
sell the Ship, and make remittance of the value 
of the Ship, her cargo and freight, and hoped to do 
it without much loss, but to my astonishment it 
turned out extream bad." 

After speaking of the loss of the vessel just re- 
ferred to, he adds that his whaling business had 
also resulted in considerable loss. 

In this same year, 1768, the son Joseph, who was 



72 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

also left penniless by this failure, again goes to Lon- 
don for the sorry task of adjusting as best he may 
the affairs of the firm with its creditors. It seems 
quite certain that they were satisfied that every 
effort would be made to meet their claims. The 
father had already submitted to these creditors a 
full and frank statement of his affairs and schedule 
of his resources, even to the books in his library 
and his salary as Deputy Governor, and had con- 
veyed to them without any request on their part 
such amounts and values as he believed would 
eventually satisfy their claims. 

The best evidence of the confidence which these 
and other creditors felt in his integrity is in the 
fact that they refrained from pressing their claims 
in court, and remained satisfied with such con- 
veyances of property as their debtor could equitably 
make. No record can be found of any legal pro- 
ceedings against him, and for years afterwards he 
struggled to retrieve his fortunes, but without suc- 
cess. Meantime he retained his positions in public 
life, as Chief Justice of the Superior Court and 
Judge of Probate until his election as Governor 
in 1769, advancing in 1766 from the position of 
Assistant to that of Deputy Governor. 

From the time of his failure to the close of his 
life, we must remember to look upon him as a man 
in reduced financial circumstances, with only his 
personal worth to recommend him for the high 
public positions to which he was called. 



CHAPTER VIII 

THE STAMP ACT LETTERS OF JOSEPH TRUMBULL 

FROM LONDON — CONNECTICUT'S OPPOSITION TO THE 

ACT — INGERSOLL COMPELLED TO RESIGN STAMP 

ACT CONGRESS — GOVERNOR FITCH TAKES THE OATH 
— TRUMBULL AND OTHERS REFUSE TO WITNESS THE 
CEREMONY TRUMBULL ELECTED DEPUTY GOVER- 
NOR PITKIN SUCCEEDS FITCH AS GOVERNOR 

AT the time when the son Joseph made his 
first visit to London, the policy of the 
Mother Country towards the American 
colonies had begun to assume the greatest 
importance. In Massachusetts Trumbull's Har- 
vard classmate, Chief Justice Thomas Hutchinson, 
had granted the odious Writs of Assistance on the 
application of His Majesty's Collector of Customs, 
honestly believing, no doubt, that it was his bounden 
duty. In other colonies, the king had begun to 
interfere in internal affairs, such as the appointment 
of chief justices. Prudent little Connecticut appears 
to have been free from such exactions just at this 
time, having in 1762 submitted a very humble 
report to the Lords of Trade and Finance, showing 
that the resources of the colony were meagre and 
the population small. 

None the less, however, was Connecticut keenly 
alert, watching with untiring interest the policy 
of the Mother Country as it applied to other colonies 

73 



74 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

and threatened to apply to herself. Of all the pub- 
lic men in this colony, few if any were more com- 
petent than Trumbull to form clear and intelligent 
opinions on the weighty political issues of the day. 
Thirty years in public life had familiarized him 
with the charter rights of his colony and the policy 
of the home government, whose established errors 
in colonial rule were aggravated and increased by 
the stupid policy of George III, and his sycophants. 

Especially during Joseph Trumbull's first visit 
to London was the condition of affairs in Parlia- 
ment ominous, and he was an interested listener 
to the discussions of the day regarding the colonial 
policy of England, which discussions he faithfully 
reported to his father. The following extract from 
his letter of December lo, 1763, will serve as a 
specimen: 

"They talk of taxing the Colonies for the support 
of the Troops to be kept up in America, and that 
tax to be laid on the Colonies without any respect 
to their charter priviledges, or rather, in such manner 
as to sap the foundations of them all. Indeed, our 
good Friends, Lord Chief Justice Mansfield, Lord 
Sandwich, the Duke of Bedford, Earl of Halifax 
and some others are of the opinion that all the 
charters in America should be immediately vacated 
without ceremony, and that we should be governed 
entirely by Governors and Councils appointed by 
the King, and those with stated salaries, to make 
them independent of the people, and that we should 
have no Assembleys. 

"When it objected that those charters can't be 



LETTERS FROM HIS SON 75 

taken away without a tryal for some breach of 
those charters, they say they were given in high 
Times by the King without consent of Parhament, 
and so are void in themselves. 

"They also propose a Superintendent over the 
whole — and that we shall be prevented making 
Bar Iron, and several other barbarous impositions 
are proposed to be laid on us, unless the cruel in- 
tentions of those people now in power are by some 
means prevented." 

Later, under date of March 24, 1764, he writes: 

"The internal tax is put off, and I hope the 
Colony's will make such objections that it may never 
be laid on except with our consent — The thing 
aimed at is not so much the money to be raised 
by the Stamp Duty as a precedent for Future 
Times. Was we to give up this point, I dare to 
undertake that in four years' Time we should be 
governed by King's Governors and Councils with- 
out a House of Representatives in all America. 
They may take away all our charters by the same 
Rule they Tax us." 

These and other similar communications are 
frequently to be found among the letters which the 
son wrote to the father in these exciting times. 
The putting off of the legislation in Parliament 
regarding the taxation of the American colonies 
was, as we know, only for a short time — long 
enough, however, for opinion to crystallize in the 
colonies through the discussions which the news 
from England continually incited. In Connecticut 
we have the old tradition of the secret debate on 



^e JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

the Stamp Act in the General Assembly, and the 
public issue of the pamphlet entitled "Reasons why 
the British colonies in America should not be charged 
with Internal Taxes by Authority of Parliament; 
humbly offered for consideration in behalf of the 
Colony of Connecticut." This pamphlet, officially 
adopted by the General Assembly, was presented 
by Jared Ingersoll, the colony's agent, to Lord 
Grenville, who praised the tone in which it was 
written, but declined to concede the force of its 
arguments. 

For reasons which it is hardly to our purpose to 
discuss in this connection, the Stamp Act passed 
the House of Commons and became a law on March 
22, 1765; but through the influence of Ingersoll 
its enforcement in the colonies was postponed until 
the following November. It was impossible for 
Benjamin Franklin, as it was impossible for the 
British people, to believe that the enforcement of 
the Act would be resisted by the colonists. Jared 
Ingersoll shared in this belief, and accepted, on 
Franklin's advice, the office of stamp distributor 
for Connecticut; an office which, on his arrival 
in the following September, he was compelled to 
resign at the demand of about five hundred Sons 
of Liberty armed with peeled staves, at Wethersfield. 

In this same eventful month of September, Con- 
necticut, at a special session of the General Assembly, 
appoints her delegates to the Stamp Act Congress 
to be held in New York. Among the delegates at 
first appointed, the name of Jonathan Trumbull 
appears; but for some reason he did not serve on 



OPPOSITION TO STAMP ACT yy 

this commission, and Eliphalet Dyer attended in 
his stead, with the two other commissioners, ham- 
pered to quite an extent by the restrictions which 
the General Assembly had laid upon them, yet 
doing good service in framing petitions to the 
king and to Parliament. In this same September, 
too, the Reverend Stephen Johnson of Lyme begins 
his anonymous publications in the New London 
Gazette, eloquently and forcefully urging resistance 
to the Stamp Act. 

By these and other influences the people of Con- 
necticut, like those of other colonies, became unan- 
imous in the opinion that the Stamp Act was 
subversive of the rights of the colonists. Especially 
in Connecticut was this true, for a cherished prin- 
ciple here had long been that no internal taxes 
should be levied except by a legislative assembly 
in which the colony should be duly represented. 
Unanimous though the people were in this opinion, 
they were still divided into two parties, of which one 
believed that their duty as loyal subjects to the 
King of England compelled them to obey any laws, 
however odious, which might be enacted by the 
kmg's Parliament; while the other party believed 
that the rights of the colonists were such that they 
were not bound to obey any laws of the Mother 
Country which were subversive of those rights. 

The one party was led by Thomas Fitch, then 
Governor of the colony, a man well versed in law, 
careful of the rights of his colony, but believing that 
the rights of his king were superior, and that his 
mandates, whatever they might be, should be 



78 JONylTII/IN rRlIMIiULL 

obeyed. No outspoken ()|)i)onent of (lovernor Fitch 
can be found who more nearly matched him in 
ac(iuirements and abih'ty than Jonathan 'iVumbull, 
who made no secret ol his behel that no mandate 
ol the kin^ shouhl be obeyed which deprived the 
colonists ol their rights as British subjects. In 
the h)llowin|; November the inevitable clash of these 
two parties occurred in the Governor's Council, 
of which rinmbull was, as he had ])c-en for many 
years, a meiTd)er. A clause in the Stamp Act, which 
was to take effect in this month, made it obligatory 
upon every governor of the American colonies to 
take an oath to cause "all and every o( the clauses 
[of the Act] to be punctually and hona-fide 
observed." 'I'his oath Covernor litch rec|uested 
his Counc il to administer to him at a meeting called 
for that i)urpose. 

rhere is no doubt, from such fragmentary reports 
as we get of this memorable meeting of the Gover- 
nor's Council, that a long and a last heated debate 
ensued. It appears from a j^rinted statement of 
Governor fitch, in which he vindicates his own 
coil ISC', that the Council thought it advisable for 
him to offer to take the oath; but it is evident, 
although he does not say so, that when he acted 
on lliis suggestion, a majority ol the Council re- 
fused to have anything to do with such a j)r()ceeding. 
Four members, however, were willing to take part 
in the ceremony, and as three were sullicient for 
the purpose. Governor Fitch called upon them to 
administer the oath. 

He had argued that the hue of one thousand 



DEPUTY GOrERNOR 79 

pounds which would, by the Act, he imposed upon 
any governor who did not take the onth would 
a])i)ly ecjuidly to each and every member of tlie 
Council who refused to administer it.' The ma- 
jority of the Council, to the nuiriher of seven, re- 
mained firm in their op|)osition to the course of the 
(lovernor. The outspoken protests of 1 rumbull and 
Dyer were, it is said, particularly indignant, but 
all to no i)urpose. The oath was about to be ad- 
ministered, and the time had arrived when actions 
must "speak louder than words." In this belief 
the seven i)r()testiiig mend^ers Trumbull, as Stuart 
tells us, at their head — indignantly withdrew from 
the council chamber, refusing to witness the hate- 
ful ceremony. 

The taking of the oath to administer the Stamp 
Act was fatal to the political career of Thomas 
fitch. After tlie next election he retired from pub- 
lic life, and William Pitkin was elected governor in 
his stead. Fitch, an able, intelligent and sincere 
man, carried with him cpn'te a following, and ap- 
jieared as a candidate for governor on several 
subsecjuent elections, as a supporter of the king. 
Hut popular sentiment was too strongly opposed 
to his views, and he |)asse(l into history enrolled 
among Sabine's "Loyalists of the American Revo- 
lution." 

With the election of William Pitkin as Governor 
came the election of Jonathan Trumbull as Deputy 
(lOvernor. The four mend^ers of Governor Pitch's 

' I'itcir.s pumplilct, cntiilcd "Some icjsons winch iiiHucnccd tlic Cjovcriior 
to takr aiul llic Couiuillors to adminisd i (lie oatli." 



8o JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

Council who had administered the Stamp Act oath 
were, with him, relegated to private life, and men 
of the opposing party were chosen in their places. 
Trumbull was soon placed on a committee to assist 
the Governor in preparing "an humble, dutiful 
and loyal Address to his Majesty expressive of the 
filial duty, gratitude and satisfaction of the Gover- 
nor and Company of this colony on the happy 
occasion of the beneficial repeal of the late American 
Stamp Act." A general thanksgiving was appointed, 
and the prospect, for the moment, seemed bright. 
The Declaratory Act, however, coupled with the 
repeal of the Stamp Act, asserted England's right 
to tax the American colonies, and hung ominously 
over them, even in these days of general rejoicing. 



CHAPTER IX 

TRUMBULL ELECTED GOVERNOR — THE POLITICAL 
PARTIES IN CONNECTICUT — HIS COURSE REGARDING 
WRITS OF ASSISTANCE — THE CONTEST FOR GOVERN- 
ORSHIP CAMPAIGN LITERATURE 

THE exciting and interesting times which 
we have now reached find Trumbull per- 
sonally at the lowest ebb of his mer- 
cantile career and politically nearing the floodtide 
of his advancement in public life. There is no 
doubt that even an honorable and unavoidable 
mercantile failure, such as he experienced in the 
second year of his deputy governorship, was, in 
his day, more nearly fatal to political advancement 
than it might be in our day. Yet in 1768, the year 
after his failure, he retained his office of deputy 
governor by popular vote, although in the follow- 
ing year he failed to obtain a majority of the votes 
of the freeman, and was reelected by vote of the 
General Assembly, which body also elected him 
governor, in October of this same year, to fill the 
vacancy caused by the death of Governor Pitkin. 
Again, in 1770, his reelection as governor was by 
the General Assembly, as he again failed of "a 
majority of the votes of the people." ^ From this 
time forward, however, his opponents appear to 
have given up the contest, and for ten years after- 

1 Connecticut Courant. 
81 



82 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

wards his election by the people was, in most in- 
stances, as good as unanimous. 

There is no doubt that during the last year of 
his deputy-governorship and the first two years of 
his governorship, party lines were quite firmly 
drawn, and his opponents used every means in 
their power to defeat him. The indications are 
that the two parties previously referred to were at 
this time quite evenly divided, and that Trum- 
bull's pronounced views of opposition to the op- 
pressive measures of the home government were 
coupled with his unfortunate financial condition 
by his opponents in a way to prejudice voters 
against him. In 1768 application had been made to 
him as Chief Justice by His Majesty's Collector 
of Customs, Duncan Stewart, for Writs of Assis- 
tance, authorizing the king's officers of the customs 
indiscriminately to search private houses for smug- 
gled goods and for other evidences of violation of 
the navigation laws, and to compel any person 
upon whom they might call to assist them in such 
search. Eight years before this time, Thomas 
Hutchinson, as we have seen, had granted such 
writs in Massachusetts against the eloquent appeals 
of James Otis and against the expressed sentiment 
and will of the people. 

It is, perhaps, enough to say that, owing to the 
stand taken by Trumbull as Chief Justice at this 
time and subsequently, such writs were never 
granted in Connecticut. The first application for 
these writs was, no doubt, an attempt on the part 
of the applicants to test the position of Chief Justice 



JUDICIAL DECISION 83 

Trumbull on the subject. The court record of this 
case closes with the following decision, if it may be 
so called: 

"And no information being made by said Peti- 
tioners, or otherwise, of any special occasion for 
said Writ — this Court is of opinion that it is need- 
ful to consider on the purport of said Act [of Parlia- 
ment], and the manner and form of granting such 
Writs of Assistance, according to the usages of 
his Majesty's Court of Exchequer: Therefore this 
Court will further consider and advise thereon.'* 

And thus the matter rested for more than a year, 
during which time Trumbull wrote at some length 
on the subject to Richard Jackson, the agent of 
Connecticut at London, and to William Samuel 
Johnson, who was in London as a special agent and 
attorney in the then celebrated Mohegan case. 
Johnson writes in September, 1769: 

"I own / was surprised to fmd such a Writ in 
use in a country so jealous of its liberties, but it 
seems it now has custom on its side, and issues quite 
of course. I find it has also been adopted in Mas- 
sachusetts Bay and some other Provinces, and is 
said to be grounded on this principle — that the 
presence of the Civil Officer is necessary for the 
preservation of Peace, as well as to give a proper 
Countenance to the Officers of the Revenue." 

During the previous April, it seems that Collector 
Stewart, after waiting for thirteen months for re- 
sults of the further consideration and advice which 
the Court purposed to take regarding his previous 
petition, again applies, more specifically than be- 



84 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

fore, for Writs of Assistance, citing a case in which 
such a writ was needed. Again Chief Justice Trum- 
bull replies that "the Court will be further advised", 
and that he will lay the case before the General 
Assembly which was soon to convene. This body 
met a full statement of the matter in its usual con- 
servative and cautious manner, replying through a 
committee "that the Assembly could take no notice 
of it, that it belonged to the Superior Court, and 
that as individuals, not as members of the Assembly, 
they advised the Court not to grant such Warrants, 
which seemed to be the universal opinion", as 
appears from a letter written by Trumbull to William 
Samuel Johnson, June 14, 1769. He also writes as 
follows to Johnson in the same letter, referring to 
an application from the king's attorney for his 
decision, which he does not intend to give until 
the next term of the court : 

"I have taken care to find what the Courts in 
the other Colonies have done, and find no such 
Writs have been given by any of the Courts except 
in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, where they 
are given as soon as asked for. I believe the Courts 
in all the other Colonies will be as well united, and 
as firm in this Matter, as in anything that has yet 
happened between us and Great Britain. 

"I have never yet seen any Act of Parliament 
authorizing the Court of Exchequer in giving such 
Writs as they give, but conceive they have crept 
into use by the inattention of the people, and the 
bad practices of designing men. We are directed 
to give such Writs as the Court of Exchequer are 



WRITS OF ASSISTANCE 85 

enabled by Act of Parliament to give, which are 
very different, as I conceive, from such Writs as 
they do give. Our Court will, on all occasions of 
Complaint, grant such Warrants as may be neces- 
sary for promoting his Majesty's service, and at 
the same time consistent with the liberty and priv- 
ilege of the subject, and made returnable to the 
Court; but further than that we dare not go, and 
they must not expect we shall. I give you my mind 
on this subject, as I expect representation will be 
made of the conduct of the Court herein, and it 
may not be amiss to have you prepared on the 
occasion." 

The letter closes with Trumbull's view of the 
failure to intimidate the colonies by sending troops 
to awe them into submission, and with the following 
significant words: 

"Notwithstanding the ill-judged burthens heaped 
upon us by a weak and wicked Administration, we 
still retain a degree of regard, and even fondness 
for Great Britain, and a firm attachment to his 
Majesty's person, family, and government, and on 
just and equal terms, as children, not as slaves, 
should rejoice to remain united with them to the 
latest time. But to think of being slaves — we 
who so well know the bitterness of it by the in- 
stances so continually before our eyes, cannot bear 
the shocking thought — Nature starts back at the 
idea!" 

Johnson having, as we have seen, already in- 
formed Trumbull of the readiness with which Writs 
of Assistance were granted in England and the 



86 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

legal status of such writs, replies under date of 
October i6, 1769, to the above letter, making men- 
tion of the course of Trumbull : 

"The intelligence you have favored me with of 
the steps which have been taken relative to writs 
of assistance, is very obliging as well as useful to 
the purpose you mention. It gives me pleasure to 
find that it is so probable that the courts of the other 
Colonies will be agreed with you on this important 
point. Union in this, as in everything else, is of 
the last importance. If an united stand is made 
upon this occasion, I think it extremely probable 
that the capital point will be carried without much 
difficulty; and it will be a very great satisfaction, 
and not a little redound to their honor, that the 
Superior Court of Connecticut have taken the lead 
in a matter of so much consequence to the liberty, 
the property, and the security of the subject." 

Thus did one of the most learned and scholarly 
of the sons of Connecticut support and commend 
the course of Trumbull in this matter. No record 
can be found of any further reply to the application 
of the King's Attorney, a reply which it may not 
have been prudent, at the time, to place on the 
records of the Court, The attitude of the Chief 
Justice in the matter is plainly shown in his corre- 
spondence with Johnson. 

But there were others — Trumbull's political op- 
ponents — who viewed this and similar matters 
differently, and who persuaded themselves and 
tried to persuade others that such men as Trum- 
bull, Johnson and all others who were unwilling to 



CAMPAIGN LITERATURE 87 

submit to the measures and requirements of the 
home government were little, if any, better than 
anarchists. After the death of Governor Pitkin 
in October, 1769, and the appointment of Trum- 
bull by the General Assembly to fill his unexpired 
term, there is no doubt that an active canvass for 
the next election of a governor ensued, and that 
ex-Governor Fitch, or his friends, or both, used 
all the political methods of the day to secure his 
reelection by the people. There is no doubt that 
these methods included full discussions in the 
country store, field and fireside, of the merits of 
the two candidates Trumbull and Fitch, in which 
the course of the former in refusing to witness the 
taking of the Stamp Act oath, in refusing to issue 
Writs of Assistance, and in denouncing the policy 
of the home government were severely criticized by 
the conservatives. Even the poet of the day dis- 
cussed the situation in verse, and has left us as a 
result a ballad which is numbered among the curi- 
osities of American literature. It discloses the fact 
that Trumbull's mercantile failure figured, as has 
been intimated, among the obstacles in the way of 
his political advancement. The ballad consists of 
ten verses, each followed by a chorus applying par- 
ticularly to the governor to whom it refers. The 
verses relating to Governors Fitch and Pitkin, and 
to the coming election, apply particularly to the 
situation at the time, although the ballad refers 
to the various governors under the charter, with 
the exception of Governor William Leete. In the 
following verses "Pitch" means Governor Fitch, 



88 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

whose pseudonym is intended to conform to the 
nautical cast of the ballad; "Will" means Governor 
Pitkin, and *'his Purser", Jonathan Trumbull, the 
opposing candidate. The "Gunners" doubtless 
mean such men as Israel Putnam, John Durkee, 
and other Sons of Liberty, and the "midshippers" 
are their followers, 

"Old Captain Pitch commanded next, — 

A skillful navigator, 
And as good a seaman as ever turned 

His hardy face to weather. 
When a mutiny on board the Ship, 

Fomented by Chaplain and Gunner, 
Drove Captain Pitch from the quarter-deck, 

And the Ship was most undone, Sir. 

"chorus — Now this is what I will maintain, 
Let who will it gainsay, Sir, — 
Whene'er the Crew has mutinied 

The Chaplain has been in the fray, Sir. 

"Our old friend Will next took the Helm, 

Who'd cruised for many years. Sir, 
And steer'd as well, when the weather was calm, 

As any Tar on board. Sir. 
His friendly art succeeded now 

To accomplish every measure. 
By a 'How do you do,' with a decent Bow, 

And a shaking of hands forever. 

"chorus — Now this is what I will maintain 

As the judgment of one Freeman, 
That his bowing his head and shaking of hands 
Was done to please the Seaman. 

"Now Will is dead, and his Purser broke, 
I know not who'll come next, Sir; 



CAMPAIGN LITERATURE 89 

The Seamen call for old Pitch again, — 

Affairs are sore perplexed, Sir. 
But the Gunners and some midshippers 

Are making an insurrection. 
And would rather the ship should founder quite 

Than be saved by Pitch's inspection. 

"chorus — But this is what I will maintain, 

In spite of Gunners and all, Sir, — 
If Pitch can save the Ship once more, 
'Tis best he overhaul her! 

Amen." 

The entire ballad bears the title : 
"Observations on the several commanders of the 
Ship Connecticut. Oct. 10, 1769. by an old decrepid 
Seaman who laments the Ship's misfortune. 

"To the tune of 'The Vicar of Bray'. 
"'Sic transit Gloria Mundi'." 

This ballad, like some other campaign literature, 
was probably circulated in manuscript. As an 
indication of the interest which the candidate felt 
in it, a copy was found, long after his death, among 
the "Trumbull Papers" which are now in possession 
of the Connecticut Historical Society. 

Unfortunately for our purpose, the political con- 
tests of the time made no showing in the public 
press, and we are only informed by the Connecticut 
Courant, that Trumbull, at the election in May, 
1770, did not receive a majority of the votes of the 
people, while the records of the General Assembly 
contain only the bare statement that he was elected 
by the vote of that body, although all the other 



90 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

candidates, for whose offices there was probably 
less of a contest, were elected by popular vote. 

And thus Governor Fitch passes from sight in 
public life, and Governor Trumbull assumes the 
position which Fitch reluctantly relinquished. 



CHAPTER X 

DEATH OF Trumbull's mother — the mohegan 

CASE SUSQUEHANNA CASE EMBASSY OF WIL- 
LIAM SAMUEL JOHNSON HIS CORRESPONDENCE WITH 

THE GOVERNORS OF CONNECTICUT JOHNSON's AC- 
tion in the susquehanna case in london 

Trumbull's share in this case 

IT should be noted that on November 8, 1768, 
Trumbull's mother died at the advanced 
age of eighty-five, leaving him, at the age 
of fifty-eight, with a new generation of sons and 
daughters about him. With his election to the 
governorship, his other public offices ceased, and 
such personal business as he was engaged In was 
gradually relinquished, until. In a few years, It was 
entirely given up. 

The beginning of Governor Trumbull's term of 
office finds the colony of Connecticut with two Im- 
portant and Intricate lawsuits on her hands. These 
were the Mohegan case and the Susquehanna case, 
the responsibilities of which fell at once upon the 
chief executive of the colony. His position on the 
Governor's Council for many years, and his appoint- 
ment on committees In connection with both these 
cases, had familiarized him with their merits, and 
prepared him for the more active part which he 
was now to take in their prosecution. Far more 
Important, however, was the general attitude of 

91 



92 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

Great Britain towards her American colonies at 
this time, and the policy to be pursued by the unique 
little colony of Connecticut to preserve her liberal 
charter rights and the rights of her people as free- 
born Englishmen. In all these matters, corre- 
spondence and documents have been preserved 
which show, quite plainly, Trumbull's various sour- 
ces of information and the opportunities he enjoyed 
for forming a careful and candid opinion not only 
on the affairs of his colony, but on the affairs of his 
country as well. 

First, regarding the Mohegan case: This was, at 
the time of his first election as Governor, a case of 
sixty-five years' standing — six years older than 
the Governor himself. It had begun in 1704, as the 
result of a commission appointed by Queen Anne 
upon the petition of the Mohegan Indians insti- 
gated by John Mason, a descendant of the hero of 
the Pequot War, claiming lands of which they 
alleged they had been deprived. Joseph Dudley 
of Massachusetts was at the head of this commis- 
sion. Connecticut, relying on her charter rights, 
refused to appear and plead in her own defense, and 
the case was decided against her, with costs amount- 
ing to £573, 12. 8., as it probably would have been 
in any event. By this decision, the colony was 
called upon to give up to the Mohegan Indians 
lands which had been gained by conquest of the 
Pequots, by purchase, and by conveyance to the 
colony from the first John Mason. An appeal 
brought about the appointment of a commission 
of review in 1706, but Connecticut, finding herself 



THE MOHEGAN CASE 93 

able under her charter to manage her own Indian 
affairs, never made use of this commission, and it 
was not until 1737 that the case ever appeared in 
court again. Meantime the Mohegans were di- 
vided into two factions, one for and one opposed 
to the claim; and their sachems had made grants 
of land in all directions, sometimes conveying the 
same piece of land to several different parties. The 
Masons, of whom there was now a new generation, 
went to England and applied for a new commission 
to determine the claims which the General Assembly 
of Connecticut had refused to grant them. A 
commission was appointed by the Crown, and con- 
vened at Norwich on June 4, 1738. After a long 
hearing, in which it is interesting to watch the course 
of the Colony, a decision was given in its favor. 
With this decision the Masons, of course, were 
dissatisfied, again appealed to the Crown, and 
succeeded in getting the decision set aside and a 
new commission appointed. This commission met 
at Norwich in July, 1743, and by a bare majority 
again decided in favor of Connecticut, on the fifth 
of the following November. Again the Masons 
appealed to the Crown, and upon this appeal, it 
was decided that the case should be tried before 
"The King's Most Excellent Majesty in Council.*' 
This brings us to the year 1766, at which time it 
was found necessary for Connecticut to send William 
Samuel Johnson as a special agent to London to 
assist Richard Jackson, the resident agent of the 
Colony, in preparing the case for defense. A wiser 
choice of a special agent could not have been made. 



94 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

Johnson was well versed in the law, and proved 
himself an accomplished courtier and diplomatist. 
For the five years during which he waited in England 
at great personal sacrifice and inconvenience, for 
the trial of the case, his services to his country can 
hardly be overestimated. It was fortunate for 
Connecticut that the frequent attacks of gout 
suffered by the Attorney-general, and the constant 
habit of members of the King's Council of betaking 
themselves to their country residences during the 
recesses and vacations of Parliament, when the 
case was set down for trial, kept Johnson in London 
waiting from one to another postponement by the 
King's Council. 

The case itself sinks into insignificance when 
compared with the important news which Johnson 
was enabled to send to the governors of Connecticut 
during his long, enforced exile in London. Of 
these letters Doctor Jeremy Belknap says, before 
their publication by the Massachusetts Historical 
Society, "I have read the letters repeatedly with 
delight, and have gained a better idea of the polit- 
ical system than from all the books published dur- 
ing that period. . . . The publication of them 
would do him honor, as he appears in them to have 
been a firm friend to the liberties of his country, and 
a faithful, vigilant, discerning agent, detesting the 
artifices, evasions and blunders of the British Court, 
and giving the best information, advice and cau- 
tion to his employers." 

Now that these letters are in print,^ Doctor 

' Collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society, Vol. 9, fifth series. 



LETTER FROM HUTCHINSON 95 

Belknap's verdict of more than a century ago may 
well be reaffirmed by the reader of to-day. 

It was this mass of active correspondence, among 
other things, that Trumbull in his positions of 
Deputy Governor and Governor discussed and 
studied in council and in private; and from this 
and other sources that he gained his knowledge 
of the mistaken policy of Great Britain towards 
her American colonies. He heard the other side, 
too; for in November, 1769, we find his Harvard 
classmate, Thomas Hutchinson, writing him, after 
speaking of the loss of the Warwick patent in the 
destruction of his home : 

"I have letters from Sir F. Bernard who was as 
favorably received as he could wish. . . . The 
Parliament would not meet till after Xmas. We 
had not provoked them enough the last of Sept. 
wholly to lay aside the intention of repealing the 
Revenue Acts, or part of them. I wish what we 
have done since may not do it. They desire all the 
effects of the Merchants' Combination, but resent 
the contempt and indignity which they carry with 
them. I am sorry your Assembly have publickly 
justified them. It is not improbable ours will follow 
the example, 
"lam 

"Your most Obed, Humble Serv.*. 

"Tho. Hutchinson."! 

The monotony of the reports of Johnson regard- 
ing the delays and heavy expenses in the Mohegan 
case is varied, at times, by his reports of the phases 

^ Unpublished Trumbull papers in Massachusetts Historical Society. 



96 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

which it assumed during his five years of waiting 
for its trial; and by the important information 
which Governor Trumbull sent him regarding the 
right and title of Connecticut to the Indian 
lands in question. Johnson's alert watchfulness 
in the matter discovers that Samson Occum, the 
Indian preacher, had returned to London in the 
interests of the case, and had held an interview 
with Lord Hillsborough regarding it in March, 
1768. During the pendency of the case in 1769 
Johnson learns that the Indians, through the Mason 
party, had presented a petition to the king regarding 
it, which irregular proceeding was rumored to have 
been by the advice of Lord Hillsborough; where- 
upon Johnson confronts him with this rumor, and 
is met by his denial of any knowledge of such peti- 
tion, and his acquiescence in Johnson's opinion that 
such a proceeding would be unwarrantable. John- 
son is also obliged to deny a false accusation on the 
part of the appellants that the colonial agents had 
attempted to delay or prevent the trial by bribing 
attorneys. He also watches Mason, and learns 
that he went to America for more money and evi- 
dence in 1769, but was unsuccessful in the quest of 
evidence, though his friends furnished him some 
money. "He has no fresh grounds of hope," John- 
son writes, "nor we of fear", the principal grounds 
of fear at this time being that the prejudice in 
London against the colonies in general might injure 
the case for Connecticut. It is at this point that 
we learn of Johnson's solicitude for the effects of 
an adverse decision upon the charter rights of the 



THE MOHEGAN CASE 97 

colony; something far more to be dreaded than the 
mere success of Mason in estabHshing his claim. 
At this point, too, he acknowledges the receipt of 
Trumbull's statement of the entire case, and praises 
the just and clear idea which it gives, expressing the 
hope and belief that Trumbull's visit to the Mohe- 
gans by appointment of the General Assembly will 
have a good effect. Trumbull's scrupulous atten- 
tion to the case is evidenced by Johnson's acknowl- 
edgment of a genealogical draft from his hands, 
showing the pedigree of the Mohegan sachems, a 
question which had played an important part in 
the earlier hearings. Later, too, Trumbull gives 
in full detail the schemes of one Moses Park to 
prejudice the case. In short, no detail escapes his 
attention which may be of any use to Johnson in 
his defense of the rights of his colony, and all these 
matters of interest are fully communicated to him, 
forming the only known sources of information 
which Johnson received from home in the matter 
during his long sojourn in England. 

The proceedings were varied in 1770 by a motion 
on the part of Connecticut to dismiss the appeal. 
At last, on June 12, 1770, the case was opened in 
Council by the appellants in an address consuming 
two days, in which the colony and landholders were 
called tyrants and usurpers, to which false accusa- 
tions the Council were only too ready to listen. 
The illness of the Attorney-general, who was to 
answer for Connecticut, postponed the trial for 
another full year, until at last we find Johnson 
writing that the hearing ended on June 11, 1771, 



98 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

at which time the decision was pending. This 
decision was at last given practically in favor of 
Connecticut, at or about the time when Johnson 
gladly returned to his home. 

Thus ended a lawsuit of nearly seventy years' 
standing, in the course of which Trumbull's share 
in the defense of his colony forms an important 
part. He it was who prepared a full statement 
of the case, and furnished, as we have seen, other 
important evidence regarding it. A service of in- 
estimable value which he performed in connection 
with these careful and arduous researches was the 
preservation of the only portion of the journal of 
the first John Winthrop then known to exist. At 
the time of making his investigations this journal was 
secured by him among papers furnished by the 
Winthrop family. His knowledge and love of the 
study of the history of his colony and country led 
him to be the first to discover the value of this 
important document. The discovery of the second 
portion of this journal in the old South Church in 
Boston in 1816 completed this contemporary his- 
tory which has proved so valuable to historians. 
In the same connection, too, Trumbull preserved 
Lion Gardiner's account of the Pequot War, thus 
completing the four contemporary accounts of par- 
ticipators in this important event. 

One of the many unexpected services which 
Johnson was able to perform during his stay in 
London was in connection with the Susquehanna 
case, which the heirs of William Penn undertook 
to bring before British tribunals at the time, in 



THE SUSQUEHANNA CASE 99 

which attempt they were defeated by Johnson's 
masterly arguments before the Board of Trade, 
to which the case had been referred. 

In February, 1769, the first fight or battle in 
what is known as the first Pennamite war had taken 
place in the Wyoming Valley, while Trumbull was 
still Deputy Governor of Connecticut. At the 
session of the General Assembly which appointed 
him Governor, the Susquehanna case had assumed 
such importance that he was appointed to collect 
all possible evidence which might show the rights 
of Connecticut in the premises. As brief a statement 
as possible of this complicated case will be needed 
to show us with what he had to deal. 

At the Albany Congress of 1754, a company of 
Connecticut men known as the Susquehanna Com- 
pany bought from the Iroquois Indians a tract of 
land in the Wyoming Valley of Pennsylvania for 
£2000. It was believed by this company that the 
charter of Connecticut clearly gave that colony 
jurisdiction over this land, and that the Connec- 
ticut custom of buying and paying for it as Indian 
property would do the rest. King Charles II had 
first granted the land to Connecticut under her 
charter in 1662. In 1681, rivalling the Indians in 
their real estate transactions, he granted the same 
land to William Penn, leaving the lawyers of a later 
date to decide whether a royal grant of land which 
had already been granted to others should legally 
dispossess the first grantees. In 1762, the Susque- 
hanna Company sent two hundred men into the 
Wyoming Valley to effect a pioneer settlement under 



loo JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

their Indian deed and the Connecticut charter. 
The settlers fell victims to what may be called 
the first Wyoming Massacre, now almost forgotten 
in the greater horrors of the second, some sixteen 
years later. Twenty of their number were killed 
by the Delaware Indians, who surprised and over- 
powered them, wiping out this first settlement. 

In 1769, with true Connecticut grit and persis- 
tence, a new settlement was begun on the site of the 
old one, and with it began the Pennamite wars, 
so called. From this time on, for two or three 
years, the first of these "wars" raged with varying 
fortunes, under Colonel Zebulon Butler as the 
leader for the Connecticut settlers, and Captain 
Amos Ogden for the Penns. Four times was the 
settlement of the Susquehanna Company wiped 
out, and four times settlers returned to the conflict, 
which was carried on even after the battles of 
Lexington and Bunker Hill had been fought, when, 
at Governor Trumbull's earnest request, the legal 
proceedings were postponed for the sake of harmony 
among the colonies, leaving the Connecticut settlers 
still in possession of the valley, only to fall victims 
to the terrible Wyoming Massacre of 1778, and once 
more to return and rebuild their settlement. 

The final verdict regarding the claim of Connecti- 
cut to the Wyoming Valley was at last reached by a 
commission appointed by the Continental Congress 
of 1782, and the decision was adverse to that plucky 
and pertinacious little State which for twenty years 
had so bravely maintained her foothold in the 
beautiful valley which at last she lost, but on which 



LAND GRANTS loi 

the influence she stamped had a vital effect in the 
days of the Revolution, and even down to the 
present day. Far more important, however, was 
a grant made to Connecticut as a tacit compensa- 
tion for her loss of Wyoming, being a tract in what 
was then the wilderness of Ohio, larger than the 
land she could still call her own. Here, in the 
Western Reserve, was the basis of her permanent 
school fund, and here she sent her sons to transplant 
her sterling qualities in the new country, now grow- 
ing old, which is still so largely peopled by men of 
Connecticut ancestry. 

Early in his first term of office Governor Trum- 
bull was appointed with Colonel George Wyllys 
as "a committee to make diligent search after all 
deeds of conveyance relative to the title of the 
lands granted by the Crown to this Colony by the 
royal charter", and if not found in America, ** write 
to the Agent of the Colony in Great Britain to make 
diligent search for the aforesaid deeds, and also 
the grant to the Duke of York, Pennsylvania, 
Massachusetts Bay, Rhode Island, and in general 
all other grants that can affect us ... " 

It is hardly necessary to read between the lines 
in this resolve to discover that the then opening 
Pennamite war had something — perhaps every- 
thing — to do with it. We have seen that Governor 
Hutchinson of Massachusetts reported at about this 
time to Trumbull, doubtless in reply to an inquiry, 
that the original Warwick patent was lost in the 
destruction of his home. Trumbull then writes to 
Johnson in London, stating that the action of the 



I02 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

General Assembly was "occasioned partly by the 
Susquehanna Purchase", and asking for the docu- 
ments in question, also for an investigation of the 
legacy of Governor Hopkins of £2000 for educa- 
tional purposes, and Colonel Fenwick's legacy of 
£500 for public uses. 

Careful search was made by Johnson for the 
papers in question, but he was only successful in 
finding a part of them. His advice, given at length, 
with reasons and arguments, was to the effect that 
Connecticut as a colony should refrain from pressing 
her claim to the Wyoming Valley, and should insist 
that the controversy then pending should be con- 
fined strictly to the Susquehanna Company and 
the colony of Pennsylvania, or, if possible, the heirs 
of William Penn in whom the title to the land rested. 
Johnson's solicitude for the safety of the Connecti- 
cut charter led him to this view; for his obser- 
vations in London showed him the temper of the 
governing powers towards the most liberal of all the 
colonial charters, and led him to believe, no doubt 
quite rightly, that this was no time for the asser- 
tion of such rights as Connecticut possessed under 
that charter. On the other hand, the Penn party, 
who were then represented in London, lost no oppor- 
tunity for urging a hearing of the case as between 
the two colonies, and went so far as to sell a con- 
siderable portion of the land in the Wyoming Valley 
to Pennsylvanians in order to give more of a colonial 
color to the case. The agents of the Penns at last 
succeeded in bringing the case to a hearing before 
the Board of Trade, in which Johnson succeeded, 



FINAL SETTLEMENT 103 

as has been said, in showing that it was an issue 
between a corporation and the claimants of pro- 
prietorship in the land, and as such should fall 
under the jurisdiction of the colonial courts of law. 
Thus the Susquehanna case was removed from the 
British tribunals, after which, in the heat of the 
Pennamite wars, and near the opening of the Revo- 
lution, Connecticut at last asserted her rights by- 
enacting that the territory in question should form 
a part of Litchfield County, admitting it to repre- 
sentation in the General Assembly, and afterwards 
making it a separate county named Westmore- 
land. 

In all these affairs, Trumbull, governor of the 
colony and State, was of course chiefly concerned. 
Johnson's view of the case was carefully considered, 
and acted upon so far as action was possible under 
the circumstances, until at last it appeared neces- 
sary to assert jurisdiction as we have seen. Another 
elaborate document from Trumbull's pen is the 
statement of this case prepared by him to be sub- 
mitted to counsel in London, who, to the number of 
four, gave an opinion in favor of Connecticut, in 
opposition to the opinion which Charles Pratt, 
afterwards Lord Camden, had given for the Penns, 
whose counsel he was. 



CHAPTER XI 

CONNECTICUT AS VIEWED IN LONDON JOHNSON^S 

CALL ON LORD HILLSBOROUGH PETITION AGAINST 

REVENUE ACTS BISHOPS IN AMERICA^ — THE FIVE 

PER CENT. DUTY AND THE NEW LONDON AFFAIR 

— THE DUTY REPEALED TRUMBULl's VIEWS ON 

BRITISH POLICY AND COLONIAL INDEPENDENCE 

DURING Johnson's long sojourn in London, 
the policy of Connecticut was marked by 
the conservatism which she had practiced 
since the days of Andros and before. She was 
continually striving to maintain her rights to 
the utmost, and to attract as little attention as 
possible in so doing. The more insignificant she 
appeared to the home government, the better. 
The Mohegan case and the Susquehanna case had 
both drawn attention to her in London, as a colony 
which, if not litigious, was the cause of litigation 
in others. These cases had been admirably managed 
by Johnson, in a way to show that his colony was 
pursuing an honorable defense in one case, and 
attempting to avoid litigation in British tribunals 
in the other. There is no doubt, however, that 
notwithstanding all precautions, Connecticut was 
closely and jealously watched by the King's Council 
during the five years of Johnson's residence in 

London. 

104 



JOHNSON AND HILLSBOROUGH 105 

Early in 1768 Lord Hillsborough was made 
Secretary of State for the colonies. Johnson in due 
time made a call upon him, congratulating him on 
his appointment to this high office. In a long 
letter to Governor Pitkin, Johnson fully reports 
his interview with Lord Hillsborough, who, it 
seems, found some things to criticize regarding the 
relations of Connecticut to the Crown, such as the 
lack of frequent communication with his Majesty's 
Ministers, to which Johnson, in true Connecticut 
fashion replied, that "it would be inexcusable to 
take up their attention with a detail of no conse- 
quence." Other complaints and requests he answers 
with similar diplomacy. He closes his letter to 
Governor Pitkin in the following words : 

"This was the substance, or rather these were 
the subjects (for I cannot pretend to recite all that 
passed) of about two hours' conversation with which 
his Lordship indulged me. I must do him the 
justice to say, he was very complaisant, candid and 
kind, heard with attention, replied without warmth, 
seemed willing to know the true state of things in 
America, and expressed great desire to do that 
country service. But I own, I gave him more 
credit for his complaisance than for his sentiments, 
and left him not well pleased to find he had enter- 
tained such ideas, and was in danger of such opinions 
as you see, from the tenor of his conversation, must 
at least have made some impression upon him, and 
been revolving in his mind ever since he was at 
the Board of Trade ; nor could I by all his polite- 
ness be induced to think him that very cordial 



io6 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

friend to the Colonies, which he seemed so much to 
wish I should esteem him to be." 

This important letter of Johnson's covering nearly 
twelve large octavo printed pages was, of course, 
fully discussed in the Governor's Council of which 
Trumbull was a member, and must have been very 
useful to that Council in shaping its policy towards 
the home government. 

Governor Pitkin's letter of the following June 
was read before both houses of the General Assembly 
of Connecticut, and adopted by vote, presenting to 
Johnson the arguments of the colony against the 
Townshend revenue acts, in order to fortify him 
in his arguments with Lord Hillsborough upon the 
petition presented by the colony to the king. This 
petition Johnson faithfully argued with Lord Hills- 
borough, but could not overcome that gentleman's 
objections to petitions to the king rather than to 
Parliament, and the assertion of colonial rights 
rather than commercial or political expediency. 

It is impossible in this connection to give more 
than a rather vague outline of what was taking 
place on both sides of the Atlantic so far as Con- 
necticut's interests were concerned. Before Trum- 
bull was made governor his son Joseph received 
a letter from Johnson, speaking of certain "in- 
judicious proceedings" at Lebanon, for which he 
had been called to account in London, which pro- 
ceedings had doubtless something to do with the 
action of his Majesty's Collector of Customs in 
the enforcement of the revenue acts. Speaking of 
other affairs, Johnson writes: "Lord Hillsborough's 



INTEREST IN COLONIAL AFFAIRS 107 

questions are, I doubt not, many of them insidious 
enough, and it will be right to meet Ministerial 
art with American prudence." 

The first letter after his election which Governor 
Trumbull writes to Johnson encloses copies of the 
answers made by his judicious colony to Lord Hills- 
borough's insidious questions and letters. After 
this time the letters of the Governor to Johnson 
give us some insight into the studious care with 
which Trumbull watched the interests of the colony 
whose chief executive he was; and give us, too, 
some expression of his broader views on the general 
subject of the relations between the colonies and 
the Mother Country. 

His watchful interest in minor affairs which might 
become major is shown by the following paragraph 
from his next letter to Johnson, written December 
12, 1769, which treats mostly of the details of the 
Mohegan case, but shows that other things were 
to be thought of: 

"If the motion for a Bishop in the American 
Colonies is pushed, I trust you will use your in- 
fluence to prevent his having authority to exercise 
spiritual jurisdiction over such who are not pro- 
fessors of the Church of England, and secular 
powers of any nature or kind whatever." 

To which Johnson replies on February 26, 1770: 

"It is not intended, at present, to send any 
bishops into the American Colonies; had it been, 
I should certainly have acquainted you with it; 
and should it be done at all, you may be assured, 
it will be in such manner as in no degree to preju- 



io8 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

dice, nor, if possible, even give the least offence, 
to any denomination of Protestants. It has, indeed, 
been merely a religious, and in no respect a political 
design. As I am myself of the Church of England, 
you will not doubt that I have the fullest oppor- 
tunity to be intimately acquainted with all the 
steps that have been ever taken in this affair, and 
you may rely upon it that it never was, nor is, 
the intention, or even wish, of those who have been 
most sanguine in the matter, that American bishops 
should have the least degree of secular power . . . 
much less any manner of concern, or connection with 
Christians of any other denomination, nor even any 
power, properly so called over the laity of the Church 
of England." 

And so the matter of American bishops rested 
until the days of Bishop Seabury. 

Another matter which threatened more serious 
consequences occurred in the early days of Trum- 
bull's administration. Connecticut, accustomed as 
she was to administer her own affairs under the 
autonomy granted by her charter, had imposed a tax 
or duty of five per cent, upon all goods sold within 
her borders by non-resident merchants. The act 
imposing this duty proved to be a boomerang for 
this independent little State; for while she was 
respectfully appealing to the Crown for the main- 
tenance of her rights in the matter of British duties 
on imports, it so happened that in the enforcement 
of her own five per cent, tax, she was, to all intents 
and purposes, collecting for her own treasury duties 
on imports from residents of the British Isles who 



THE NEW LONDON AFFAIR 109 

made loud complaints of the exaction on the return 
of their vessels to their home ports, as Johnson 
explained in a letter to Governor Trumbull on 
December 5, 1769. A month later we find John- 
son quite concerned about the matter; for Lord 
Hillsborough had laid a complaint on the subject 
before the Lords of Trade, who had taken the 
matter under advisement. An interview with Lord 
Hillsborough was far from satisfactory, and as 
Johnson writes, the matter *'soon became very 
serious'*, the probable outcome being that the act 
might be *' declared null and void by the King in 
Council, or the Colony be enjoined by a decree of 
the Lords of Council to repeal it, or finally that it 
might be made a ground of an act of Parliament 
obliging the Colony in future to send home all their 
acts for the royal approbation or disallowance." 

At the time of the first complaint regarding this 
act, matters were still further complicated by the 
report of an "affair at New London", which had 
reference, no doubt, to the attempts of his Maj- 
esty's Collector of Customs, Duncan Stewart, to 
enforce the revenue acts of Parliament without the 
aid of Writs of Assistance which Trumbull, as we 
have seen, had refused to grant. 

On receipt of Johnson's letter reporting these 
complications and asking for full information in 
both cases, Trumbull replies: 

"I have without loss of time procured and en- 
closed a printed copy of the only act I can think 
to be meant. The grounds of it are that many 
persons not inhabitants of the Colony transported 



no JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

in small vessels into our harbor, rivers, and creeks, 
and others brought in by land, goods and mer- 
chandise to sell among the inhabitants of the Colony 
to the prejudice of our own merchants and shop- 
keepers, who pay taxes, you know, to the public 
in proportion to their gains and returns; when 
these people, who reside in the Colony but a short 
time, pay nothing, and are thereby enabled to 
undersell our own fair dealers; that many such 
interlopers are men of little or no integrity, who 
often impose on such as purchase of them. 

"It is therefore judged that 5 per cent, is not 
more than equivalent to the tax paid by our own 
dealers, and the risk of imposition run by pur- 
chasers, and the charge of collecting. You will 
see by the terms of the act, that British goods are 
not distinguished; indeed, North American and 
West India merchandise and wares are equally 
liable to the same duty. On the New London 
affair, not having in my hands the letters from the 
collector of customs on that occasion, can only say 
at present it made no great noise here. My son, 
going to Hartford, is directed to get and enclose a 
copy of it for your use. I fancy the whole will 
appear of no great consequence." 

The letter also mentions a similar affair at New 
Haven, never reported to the Governor in detail, 
but believed by him '*to be inferior to what hath 
been usual in other places, both in that country, or 
in this", referring, no doubt, to recent riots in Eng- 
land over the Wilkes affair and other matters. 

A postscript to this letter of Trumbull's should 



THE NEW LONDON AFFAIR m 

not pass unnoticed, showing as it does his keen 
interest in home affairs and in the results of non- 
importation. He says, "This paper I write on is 
better than British gilt. It is the manufacture of 
our own Colony." It was, no doubt, the product 
of Christopher Leffingwell's pioneer paper mill; 
and we may imagine that it was very gratifying 
to the Governor to find that when Great Britain 
imposed a tax on paper Connecticut could avoid 
paying the tax by manufacturing paper of her own. 

Johnson, no doubt, reported to Lord Hillsborough 
the substance of Trumbull's letter regarding the 
New London affair, and it is to be hoped that he 
succeeded in persuading him that it was no worse 
than, if as bad as, sundry riots and demonstrations 
which were continually taking place in England 
at the time. In the more important matter of the 
five per cent, duty, he succeeded in persuading 
Hillsborough to postpone his design of laying it 
before the king in Council until the General As- 
sembly of Connecticut should have time to correct 
it in their own way, or repeal it should they see 
fit. With its customary prudence, the General 
Assembly promptly repealed the act at its next 
session, in May, 1770, thus removing a danger 
which threatened those charter rights which had 
been so often defended and protected by this staunch, 
conservative little State. The matter had been, 
no doubt, laid before the Governor's Council by 
Trumbull, on receipt of Johnson's letter. 

Beyond these matters, there was little in Lord 
Hillsborough's watchful scrutiny which brought 



112 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

Connecticut directly before the home government, 
either for counsel or reproof. He took occasion 
to condemn the course of the colony in acting on 
the circular letter of Massachusetts by sending a 
petition to the king asking the repeal of the revenue 
acts; and it was probably with no little satisfaction 
that Trumbull had learned from a previous letter 
that Hillsborough's peremptory order to Massa- 
chusetts to rescind her circular letter had been met 
by criticism and ridicule in Parliament. 

This same British Parliament as a legislative 
assembly during the years of Johnson's stay in 
London yields the most interesting feature of his 
many and faithful letters to Governors Pitkin and 
Trumbull, and yields, too, a study of an inside 
view of the vacillating and prejudiced policy of 
that Parliament towards the American colonies, 
resulting, as such a policy could not fail to result, 
in the war of the American Revolution. The public 
threats of annulling the charters of all the colonies, 
the proposed restriction of American manufac- 
tures, the exclusion of the colonists from the whale 
fisheries, the revival of the defunct statute of Henry 
VHI regarding alleged treason committed abroad, 
the sacrifice of colonial interests to political maneu- 
vering, the quartering of British troops on the 
colonists, — all these matters and many more of 
almost equal importance, Johnson heard discussed 
in a Parliament containing a few of the greatest 
statesmen that England ever called her own, and 
a majority whose subservience to a narrow-minded, 
self-willed king completely defeated such wise meas- 



COLONIAL AFFAIRS 113 

ures as these great statesmen proposed. All these 
matters he faithfully and fully reports to the gover- 
nors of Connecticut, giving to Trumbull, the sur- 
viving one at the close of the correspondence, a 
view of the vacillating and mistaken policy of 
the Mother Country, which he never could have 
gained from any other source. On learning of 
Trumbull's election as governor, Johnson writes 
on February 5, 1770: 

"I have now the honor of yours of the 8th of 
November, and beg leave to repeat my hearty con- 
dolence with you on the loss the Colony has sus- 
tained in the death of our late very worthy Gover- 
nor, and to rejoice sincerely with you and the Colony 
in your elevation to the chief command, and the 
happy supply of the vacancies occasioned thereby, 
in consequence of which, I doubt not, the affairs 
of the government will be well and wisely admin- 
istered." 

Some of the results of British legislation Trum- 
bull saw more particularly in the neighboring colony 
of Massachusetts before Johnson's return, for before 
that time the affair of the sloop Liberty^ and the 
Boston Massacre had occurred. We have seen 
already in a letter quoted in a previous chapter 
regarding the granting of Writs of Assistance, 
what were his views on the attitude of the colonists 
toward Great Britain.^ As time went on these 
views began to assume still more definite form as 
the result, to a great extent, of the Johnson corre- 
spondence. And that the definite form which these 

* Pages 84 and 85. 



114 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

views assumed looked to the independence of the 
colonies more than five years before the first shot 
of the war was fired at Lexington, may be as plainly 
learned from the following extracts of his letter 
to Johnson on January 29, 1770, as it is learned 
in the case of Samuel Adams from his personal 
statement a year or so earlier. 

Speaking of Johnson's letter of September 18, 
Trumbull says: 

"This shows us the fluctuating, distracted state 
the nation [England]] is in; the difficulties and em- 
barrassments men always bring on themselves when- 
ever they forsake the old paths of justice and equity 
and attempt to establish despotism; the danger of 
embarking deeply with any party while both are 
desirous to render the Colonies efi'ectually useful 
and subordinate to that country, that they may 
reap all the fruits of our labors, and conduct all our 
affairs solely with a view to their own emolument. 
Mutual interests alone can bind the Colonies to 
the mother country. When those interests are 
•separated, each side must assuredly pursue their 
own; and that side can use but one fair, honest and 
effectual way to prevent detriment from this, — 
which is to maintain our mutual connection in 
interest, to encourage our raising such growth, and 
making such manufactures, as will not prejudice 
their own in any degree equal to the advantage they 
bring. When any such commodities are raised 
or made, they ought to be taken off our hands, or 
the best markets pointed out to us, and the people 
ought not to be forced to find out other markets 



LETTER TO JOHNSON 115 

by stealth; nor the trade loaded with duties and 
encumbered with officers to seek out our vital 
blood, with no other benefit to the mother country 
or to this than that of taking off some of their de- 
dependent, wretched sycophants and their detestable 
tools. This country has long been accustomed to 
industry and frugality, and when they see others 
reap the largest fruits of their labors to uphold 
domination over them, and live away in luxury 
among them, it is an unsupportable burden. The 
old path is the safest, and change cannot be made 
without the utmost danger. The people of all the 
Colonies, excepting officers and their dependents, 
so far as I can find, are firmly united for the main- 
tenance and support of their rights and privileges, 
— unwilling to be taxed internally or commercially 
by any legislature but their own, or to have any 
Commissioners of the Customs to lord it over them, 
or drain off their earnings." 

Going on to speak of the Mohegan case and other 
matters, he resumes: 

"It is hard to break connections with the Mother 
Country; but when she tries to enslave us, and 
turn all our labors barely to her own emolument, 
without considering us her own sons and free-born 
fellow subjects, the strictest union must be dis- 
solved. This is our consolation, the All-wise Director 
of all events will bring to pass his own designs and 
works, — to whom we may look for direction in this 
our critical situation." 



CHAPTER XII 

WAR CLOUDS COMMITTEE OF CORRESPONDENCE 

EXCITEMENT INCREASES TOWN MEETINGS TREAT- 
MENT OF TORIES FRANCIS GREEN ABIJAH 

WILLARD CAPTAIN DAVIS DOCTOR BEEBE 

REVEREND SAMUEL PETERS — THE CONTINENTAL 

CONGRESS 

THE war clouds of the American Revolution 
gathered no less ominously or surely in Con- 
necticut than in those neighboring colonies 
in which they showed more frequent electric flashes, 
as in the affair of the schooner Gaspee in Rhode Island, 
and in the memorable, epoch-making Boston Tea 
Party in Massachusetts. The British revenue sloop 
miscalled the Liberty cruised off the Connecticut 
coast, detained and examined many merchantmen, 
and was called a pirate for her pains by Nathaniel 
Shaw of New London;^ but conservatism appears 
to have satisfied itself with opprobrious epithets in 
private correspondence in this instance, with doubt- 
less less provocation to more violent measures than 
in the case of the Gaspee. This same conservatism, 
however, stood the colony in good stead, by making 
her the least suspected and best prepared of any of 
the colonies when the time came for facing the stern 
realities of war. Her scrupulous adherence to the 

1 Miss Caulkins' "History of New London", p. 483. (The author appears 
to have mistaken the sloop Liberty for the schooner Gaspee.) 

116 



WAR CLOUDS 117 

non-importation agreement had, as we have seen, 
encouraged and estabHshed manufactures within her 
borders, in which fact we have seen Governor 
Trumbull expressing his satisfaction by letter to 
William Samuel Johnson. There is evidence in his 
business correspondence, too, that the natural re- 
sources and manufacturing possibilities of his colony- 
were subjects of much concern to him, and that no 
man realized more fully than he the disastrous effects 
of British legislation upon these vital interests; first 
by the proposed restriction of manufactures, and 
then by the removal of duties on British products 
which competed with the colonial products which 
the Townshend Act especially had called into exis- 
tence. It was, no doubt, with great satisfaction 
that the Governor signed the bill allowing to Chris- 
topher Leffingwell a bounty of "twopence the quire" 
on writing paper and one penny on other paper of 
his manufacture in his pioneer mill. The Salisbury 
iron mine and furnace, too, form another important 
item of interest to the General Assembly, and meas- 
ures were taken to keep the control of this important 
industry within the limits of the colony. These 
and similar matters engaged much of the Governor's 
time and attention in this anxious period. 

Still, affairs moved on in apparent quiet, but 
every movement towards securing or protecting the 
liberties of the country received the hearty and 
prompt support of Connecticut. At the May 
session of 1773, the General Assembly appoints a 
standing "Committee of Correspondence and En- 
quiry", at the suggestion of Virginia. Governor 



ii8 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

Trumbull's eldest son, Joseph, appears as one of the 
nine members of this committee, thus enabling 
him to keep his father constantly informed of the 
important matters on which the colonies were then 
in correspondence. 

It should be remembered that a potent influence 
was at work in Connecticut at this time which did 
not exist in the other American colonies of Great 
Britain, and that just for this reason we find in 
Connecticut fewer outbreaks of violence and quieter 
and m.ore effective measures of preparation for the 
coming struggle than in the other colonies. The 
influence which brought about these results was 
the firm, unswerving and outspoken adherence to 
the principles of American liberty and the rights of 
American citizens which Governor Trumbull so 
freely and fully manifested. In every other colony 
the revolutionary struggle presented a twofold strife: 
first, against a royal or loyalist governor, and second, 
against the oppressive measures of King George III 
and his Parliament. This state of affairs was typified 
in the three colonies adjoining Connecticut. Massa- 
chusetts presents to view a pronounced Loyalist or 
Tory in the case of Governor Thomas Hutchinson, 
and a Governor sent over by royal commission in 
the case of Thomas Gage, who succeeded him. In 
Rhode Island, Joseph Wanton, elected like Trum- 
bull to the governorship in 1769, proved himself so 
plainly a Tory that It became necessary at first 
to suspend, and at last to depose him, notwith- 
standing his personal popularity. In New York we 
find in William Tryon a governor who was not a son 



WAR CLOUDS 119 

of the soil, and whose position as a royal governor 
and afterwards a raider on Connecticut soil won 
for him a hatred which has become so traditional 
that it is difficult to give a hearing to a recently 
published defense of his previous severe measures 
in North Carolina. In all the other colonies similar 
conditions prevailed, so that Connecticut, through 
her patriot governor, occupies at this period one of 
those unique positions which, for other reasons, she 
previously and subsequently occupied in history. 

The year 1774 was a busy and exciting one for 
the Governor and his Council. It opens with an 
adjourned session of the General Assembly on the 
twelfth of January, at which much legislation was 
in progress; and places upon the Governor and a 
committee appointed to assist him the new and 
onerous duty of adjusting individual claims to 
lands included in the Susquehanna claim in and 
about the newly made Connecticut town of West- 
moreland, now in Pennsylvania. The object of 
this adjourned session appears to have been to dis- 
pose of as much unfinished business as possible, 
in order to leave the way clear for such action as 
might be needed in view of the alarming state of 
affairs about Boston, where Thomas Gage was soon 
to take the position of governor by royal appoint- 
ment, and where he was soon to attempt to enforce 
the famous Port Bill. In the following May Gov- 
ernor Trumbull receives from Governor Gage a 
formal announcement of his appointment, in which 
he gives assurances of his readiness to cooperate 
with Governor Trumbull "in all matters that con- 



I20 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

cern the good of his Majesty's service and the wel- 
fare of his subjects." ^ 

As time goes on in this ominous year 1774, we 
find the sentiment and spirit of the people of Con- 
necticut asserting itself in bolder public utterances, 
and sometimes even in personal threats and violence 
whenever a luckless Tory dares to give utterance to 
political views within the borders of the colony. 

The May session of the General Assembly opens 
with a series of resolutions in the House of Repre- 
sentatives, which, while declaring allegiance to 
George III, declare also the rights of the colony in 
very plain and unequivocal terms; denying the 
right of the British Parliament to levy taxes in the 
colonies for revenue, and asserting that "The 
only lawful representatives of the freemen of this 
colony are the persons they elect to serve as members 
of the General Assembly thereof." With this clause 
as a keynote, the resolutions take up the Boston 
Port Bill, the revival of the obsolete law of Henry 
Vni for transporting colonists to England for trial 
on certain charges, and assert that all legal pro- 
ceedings are only within the jurisdiction of the 
courts of the colony itself. These resolutions are 
finally admitted by the Upper House or Gover- 
nor's Council of the General Assembly to form a 
part of the public record of the session. This ac- 
tion shows quite plainly that conservatism is on 
the wane in Connecticut; for we may look, but 
in vain, among the records of other colonies for 
any bolder declaration of rights. 

^ Force's American Archives, 4th series, vol. i, p. 344. 



TOWN MEETINGS 121 

The town meetings, too, begin at this time to speak 
with no uncertain sound. In Farmington, the Port 
Bill is solemnly burned with appropriate cere- 
monies and resolutions. In Norwich, the town 
meeting adjourns to the church for more room, and 
with the Governor's son Joseph as secretary, reso- 
lutions of sympathy and aid are sent to Boston, 
followed by droves of sheep to the number of three 
hundred and ninety-one and other supplies. In 
the Governor's native town of Lebanon, when the 
Port Bill took effect on the first of June, the bell 
tolled during the day, and the "Town house" was 
draped in mourning. In Windham, the town meet- 
ing closes by denouncing the citizens of Marble- 
head who had presented a "fawning address" to 
Governor Hutchinson when he retired from office. 
The General Association of Congregational Ministers 
of Connecticut presents at this time a devout and 
stirring address to the Congregational clergy of 
Boston, assuring them of sympathy and support. 

These growing sentiments could not fail, at such 
a time, to bring about a few instances of the treat- 
ment which Tories might expect whenever they had 
the hardihood to utter their unpopular views, or 
even to cross the Connecticut border from other 
colonies. The first recorded instance is that of 
Francis Green, a merchant from Boston, well known 
as one of the signers of an "adulatory address to 
strengthen the hands of that parricidal tool of 
depotism", Thomas Hutchinson. Green, coming on 
a business visit to Connecticut, had no sooner reached 
the town of Windham than he found a warm recep- 



122 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

tion on the fourth of July, which two years later 
was to become the Glorious Fourth. Threatened 
with violence, he left the town on the fifth, at the 
urgent request of the townsmen, and reaching Nor- 
wich was not permitted to rem.ain there. On his 
return to Boston, he offered a reward of one hundred 
dollars for such information as would lead the 
offenders to be convicted within the province of 
Massachusetts. Green's proclamation caused no 
small mirth, and was published with appropriate 
comments in the newspapers and posted in the 
public highways. 

The sequel to this case which most concerns us 
is a communication from Governor Gage to Gover- 
nor Trumbull, transmitting affidavits, and requesting 
that the guilty parties in Windham and Nor- 
wich be speedily brought to justice, to which Gov- 
ernor Trumbull replies that others "put a very 
different face on the transaction", and calls Gage's 
attention to the fact that ''full provision is made by 
law for such offences, and Mr. Green may there 
obtain the satisfaction his cause may merit." * 
The expedient of referring such complainants to 
existing courts of law proved to be in this as in 
many subsequent cases a most useful one, even 
though there appears in it to us, and possibly ap- 
peared to the Governor, a touch of humor if not 
of irony. At the same time, such a course was no 
evasion of the issue, but rather the only legal means 
of meeting it. Engaged as he was at this time in 
engrossing public duties, he needs no excuse for such 

1 Stuart's "Life of Jonathan Trumbull, Sen.", p. 152. 



TREATMENT OF TORIES 123 

treatment of private complaints; though the spec- 
tacle of Mr. Green returning to Connecticut for a 
trial of his case in the courts of law is, in imag- 
ination, quite ludicrous, in view of his previous re- 
ception. 

Another gentleman from Boston whose polit- 
ical principles led him to share, or more than share, 
the fate of Mr. Green, was Colonel Abijah Willard, 
a member of Governor Gage's new council, who, 
as a contemporary account ^ relates, came to the 
town of Union for the purpose of attending to some 
legal business. He was met there by two of his 
attorneys from Windham, who ''publickly renounced 
him and his cause, and refused to assist him any 
more, as they looked upon him as a traitor to his 
country." He was thereupon carried to Brimfield 
in Massachusetts, where, from about four hundred 
people, a council was formed which summarily 
decreed that he should be taken to Simsbury, and 
there confined in the Newgate prison, so called. 
After proceeding about six miles in that direction, 
he agreed to take an oath, expressing his regret at 
his official position, and promising to serve no 
longer on Governor Gage's council, whereupon he 
was released; but one Captain Davis of Brimfield, 
who protested against the proceedings, was stripped 
and given ''the new fashion dress of tar and feathers." 

In the same month of September we find General 
Joseph Spencer writing to Governor Trumbull a 
letter borne to him by Doctor Beebe of East Had- 
dam, to whom the "new fashion dress of tar and 

1 Force's American Archives, 4th series, vol. i, p. 731. 



124 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

feathers'* had also been applied. Doctor Beebe 
had applied to General Spencer "to grant a suretv 
of the peace against a few of the ringleaders m 
the affair", which Spencer declined to grant, upon 
which Doctor Beebe goes to Governor Trumbull 
"for advice as to the necessity or expediency of 
his prosecuting in this case." Spencer also asks 
the Governor's advice as to his own duty as a magis- 
trate in the matter, and informs him that if he 
should issue warrants it would be impossible in the 
state of affairs then existing to execute them, al- 
though the violent treatment of Doctor Beebe 
was something of which he did not approve. It 
is well known from later proclamations that Gov- 
ernor Trumbull also strongly condemned such acts 
of violence, though he well knew, in view of the 
temper of the people, that it was impossible to 
punish them. We are only left to imagine that 
he advised Doctor Beebe to refrain from irritating 
the people by exhibiting his political doctrines, and 
showed him that an attempt to prosecute the offen- 
ders would probably only result in renewed vio- 
lence, which he, of course, deprecated, and wished 
to do all in his power to prevent. 

Thus it will be seen that even the day of fasting, 
humiliation and prayer which, by the Governor's 
solemn and devout proclamation had been appointed 
for and observed on the thirty-first of August, 
failed to humble the spirits of some of the people 
who were under the irritating influence of Tory 
utterances. .This same month of September wit- 
nessed in another portion of Connecticut a scene 



REVEREND SAMUEL PETERS 125 

which, by means of the vivid mendacity of the 
Reverend Samuel Peters, has become historic, and 
which in the nature of the case formed the most 
important of the numerous violent proceedings of 
the time. Regarding Peters himself Doctor J. 
Hammond Trumbull, one of the most accurate and 
scholarly of investigators, says : 

"The best excuse that can be made for him is, 
that he was a victim of pseudomania; that his ab- 
horrence of truth was in fact a disease, and that he 
was not morally responsible for its outbreaks." ^ 

Peters was a clergyman of the Church of Eng- 
land, a native of Hebron, Connecticut, but strongly 
opposed to the prevailing sentiments of the time, 
and, according to his own story, the man of all 
others who by his eloquence in town meeting per- 
suaded the people of Hebron to vote by a large 
majority against sending aid or supplies to Boston 
at the time of the attempted enforcement of the 
Port Bill. This town meeting was, according to 
Peters' account, called at the instigation of Gov- 
ernor Trumbull, who "sent his circular to every 
clergyman in the colony, requiring it to be read on 
the Sabbath-day to their respective congregations, 
and to urge the selectmen to warn town meetings 
to appoint a general contribution for the support 
of the poor people in Boston, shut up to starve 
by General Gage and Admiral Graves." ^ There 
may be a shadow of truth in this statement, for we 

^The True Blue Laws of New Haven and Connecticut, p. 31. 
2 "The Reverend Samuel Peters, LL.D. General History of Connecticut." 
Edition of 1877, p. 262. 



126 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

find among the Trumbull papers a printed form 
of town vote for the relief of Boston, March 8, 
1775 — some six months after the attack on Peters 
— with a form of subscription in Governor Trum- 
bull's handwriting, to be used by the people of 
Lebanon. That the Governor "required" his cir- 
cular — if he ever issued one — to be read by every 
clergyman in the colony to their congregations we 
may well doubt. 

Peters then goes on to state that Hartford, follow- 
ing Hebron, "unanimously negatived to vote for 
a general collection, which put a stop to the town 
meetings in Connecticut, to the disappointment and 
mortification of Governor Trumbull, who laid the 
blame on the influence of Dr. Peters, the Episcopal 
clergyman of these two towns. 

"Hence the Governor spread the report that 
Doctor Peters was a dangerous enemy to America, 
by his correspondence with Lord North and the 
bishops of England, and ought to be driven out 
of his native country for the safety of it. Gov- 
ernor Trumbull began and efl^ected this by his 
Windham mobs, and the mobs of the tea-destroyers 
in Boston harbor." 

This extract is taken from a manuscript of Peters's, 
now printed in an appendix to his "History of 
Connecticut" in the edition of 1877. It is given 
partly as a specimen of Peters's romantic statements. 

The visits of the "Windham mobs" on Peters 
were two, the first being on the fourteenth of August 
and the other on the sixth of September, 1774. 
At the first visit a committee of ten waited on him. 



REVEREND SAMUEL PETERS 127 

and requested his papers. This committee after- 
wards signed an affirmation to the effect that they 
had received these papers, with the written as- 
surance from Peters that he had not corresponded 
and would not correspond with his EngHsh friends 
regarding the existing state of affairs. They left 
him without injuring him in any way, and received 
his thanks for their treatment of him. 

Certain statements over the signatures of John 
Grou and John Peters regarding this visit of August 
fourteenth, bear such unmistakable marks of the 
literary style of the Reverend Samuel Peters that it 
must be inferred that, if Grou and John Peters were 
not men of straw, the statement published over 
their names was composed for them by the Reverend 
Samuel, and is entitled to the same credit as other 
works of his authorship. 

The second visit to Peters on the sixth of Sep- 
tember came much nearer to serious results. The 
Bolton Committee of Correspondence had caused 
his so-called "Resolves of the Town of Hebron", 
to which the committee of August had caused him 
to affix his name, to be published in the New London 
Gazette. These Resolves were of a kind hardly to 
be tolerated at the time; and a long argument 
which he held with the committee on this second 
visit, and subsequently with the entire assembly, 
served to demonstrate the foolishness of preaching 
to which he was so prone. But a moving cause of 
disturbance was the discharge of firearms, during 
his harangue, in Peters's house, which upon examin- 
ation proved to be well stocked with firearms, am- 



128 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

munition, swords and clubs, though he had as- 
sured the committee "that he had no arms in the 
house, except one or two old guns out of repair." 
Notwithstanding the provocation, the inventory 
of damage by the mob appears to have been the 
breaking of one window sash, one punch bowl and 
glass, and the tearing of Mr. Peters's gown and 
shirt in the course of the disturbance, which was 
at last quieted by the signing of a paper which the 
people had prepared for him, whereupon he was 
released from the custody of the mob, and departed 
amidst their cheers, accompanied perhaps by jeers. 

Peters's own account of the affair reports his 
rescue from the mob, of whom he says Governor 
Trumbull's son David was one of the leaders, by 
''three bold troopers" of Hebron, who said to the 
"commander" of the mob, ''We have to come to 
kill you, or deliver Doctor Peters. Resign him or 
die!" — placing their pistols at the commander's 
breast. They said, "Take him away and be silent." 
They then instantly led him away. 

The only account we have of his visit to Governor 
Trumbull on the following day is from Peters's 
own hand, and in a strain quite similar to his ac- 
count of his rescue from a mob of three hundred 
incensed men by three bold troopers of Hebron. 
He seems, for some reason, to be particularly bitter 
in his mention of the Governor and his son David, 
so much so that seven years later there was published 
in London a "History of Jonathan Trumbull, the 
Rebel Governor", which Doctor J. Hammond Trum- 
bull says is "evidently from the pen of Peters."^ 

' True Blue Laws of Connecticut ami New Haven, p. 32. 



REVEREND SAMUEL PETERS 129 

After his unpleasant encounters with "Windham 
mobs", Peters soon came to the conclusion that 
Connecticut was too hot to hold him, and (led 
to Boston, where through marvellous escapes from 
his pursuers, which rival the exploits of Mun- 
chausen, he sets sail for the more congenial clime 
of England, where he is enabled to pursue for the 
rest of his life his lying fulminations and his fairy 
stories regarding his native land. 

The publication in London, to which reference 
has been made, aj)f)eared in The Political Map^a- 
zine for January, 1781, and is of such a virulent 
personal character that a few extracts must be 
made from it both as a further illustration of such 
utterances as those of Peters and as a s()ccimen of 
the calumnies to which the Governor was subject 
at about this time. The article is entitled "His- 
tory of Jonathan Trumbull, the present Rebel 
Governor of Connecticut, from his Birth, early 
in this Century, to the present Day." 

After describing the ancestry, birth and early 
life of the Governor as only Peters could describe 
them, the article goes on to treat of his marriage in 
the following words: 

"No sooner had Jonathan taken his degree, 
than he became a preacher in an independent way, 
and was esteemed to be a man of grace; but having 
a bad delivery, he could not obtain a parish. How- 
ever, his politeness, apparent goodness, and address, 
recommended him to Miss Robinson, a descendant 
of the famous Reverend Mr. Robinson, head of a 
Sect both in Old and New England. His marriage 



130 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

with this Lady, whose father was a burning and 
shining light among the independents and children 
of the regicides, who settled in New England, 
raised him from obscurity to a state of nobility, 
for all who had any blood in their veins of the first 
settlers, or of the regicides, are considered in New 
England as of the rank of the Noblesse. Mr. Jona- 
than's matrimonial connection giving him the pros- 
pect of preferment in civil life, he bid adieu to the 
pulpit, and commenced merchant." 

After accusing him of dishonesty in business, 
and intolerance in religion, the four and a half 
closely printed pages contain the following personal 
description: — 

"Jonathan Trumbull, the Rebel Governor of 
Connecticut, a man of desperate fortune, with an 
abundant share of cunning, is about five feet, seven 
inches high, has dark eyes, a Roman nose, sallow 
countenance, long chin, prominent forehead, high 
and broad cheek bones, hollow cheeks and short 
neck — in person of a handsome figure and very 
active — now [1781] between 70 and 80 years of 
age. He is morose in his natural temper, reserved 
in his speech, vain and covetous, envious and 
spiteful to a great degree, never forgiving or for- 
getting an affront. He is at the same time very 
artful; he will smile in the face of those he hates, 
and court their friendship at the very moment he is 
endeavoring by every means in his power to effect 
their ruin. As to justice, he never had an idea of 
it; at least he never showed any in practice; always 
judging according to a party spirit, which ever 
domineered in his merciless soul." 



DELEGATES TO CONGRESS 131 

There is reason to believe that the description 
of the Governor's personal appearance is more 
accurate than most of Peters's utterances, for the 
reason that a price had been set on the Governor's 
head, which price Peters was particularly anxious 
that some enterprising detective might earn. 

In the following December, Governor Trumbull 
issued a proclamation in which he refers to the 
affair of Doctor Peters, and prohibits violent pro- 
ceedings such as we have noted in this and similar 
cases, not forgetting to speak of "the threatening 
aspect of Divine Providence on the rights and 
liberties of the People." In view of the possible 
effect of the report which Peters might make in 
England of his own treatment and of the rebellious 
attitude of the colony, the Governor prepared a 
full statement of the case, doubtless for transmission 
to the agent of Connecticut residing in London. 
This statement closes with the following paragraph: 

"Mr. Peters's religious sentiments, his being a 
member of the Church of England and a clergy- 
man, were not the reasons of these transactions. 
Some men who were present were of the same de- 
nomination, and dissatisfied with him as well as the 
others. Had he been of any other denomination 
in religious sentiments, his treatment would doubt- 
less have been the same." 

It should be noted that the Committee of Cor- 
respondence had met at New London, in July 
of this year, and by authority of the General As- 
sembly had appointed Silas Deane, Eliphalet Dyer 
and Roger Sherman delegates to the first Continental 



132 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

Congress, a proceeding vitally interesting to the 
Governor, as appears by his correspondence with 
these delegates during the session. The fact that 
his son Joseph had been appointed an alternate in 
this Congress for Roger Sherman, who was able to 
act as a delegate, added to the Governor's interest 
in this memorable body, and showed the confidence 
of the people in him and his family. 



CHAPTER XIII 

1775 — TRUMBULL AT THE AGE OF SIXTY-FIVE — 

PREPARATIONS FOR WAR EXTRA SESSION OF THE 

GENERAL ASSEMBLY ROYAL MEASURES TO PRE- 
VENT A SECOND SESSION OF THE CONTINENTAL 

CONGRESS — Trumbull's letter to the earl of 

DARTMOUTH 

GOVERNOR TRUMBULL, now a man of 
sixty-five, enters at this advanced stage 
of his Hfe upon the supreme period of 
his career. Instead of relaxing his energies, as 
might be expected, he redoubles them, devoting 
to the cause of American freedom in self-forgetful 
and self-sacrificing patriotism the wise experience 
gained in forty years of public life. This experience 
is made effective by the inbred Puritan vigor of 
his ripe manhood. Puritan principles underlie and 
inform his actions. His intelligence and benevolence 
carry him far beyond the narrow bounds of bigotry 
and intolerance. His views of government look 
constantly to the great, wise and just provisions of 
the Supreme Ruler, whose laws and ways of govern- 
ment have been the constant study of his life. 
Such infraction of those laws and ways as he has 
seen for ten years or more in the vacillating, but 
always unjust and oppressive policy of Great Britain 
towards her American colonies fill him with grow- 
ing abhorrence. His sole belief and sole trust is 

133 



134 JONATHAIS TRUMBULL 

in the righteousness of his country's cause. This 
abiding principle, animated and actuated by his 
inbred and inborn love of country, formed the in- 
spiration for his course; and we are now to see how 
he worked under this inspiration. 

The year 1775 shows at its beginning active prep- 
arations for the military organization and equip- 
ment of Connecticut. The Governor's son Joseph 
writes from Windham to his father on December 30, 
1774, urging the immediate purchase of ammuni- 
tion before the harbors of the coast are blockaded 
with British vessels to prevent the landing of it. 
The Governor at once calls his Council together at 
Hartford, where it is voted on the fourth of Jan- 
uary to direct the Treasurer of the colony to pro- 
cure three hundred barrels of gunpowder, fifteen 
tons of lead, and sixty thousand good flints. On 
the fifth a proclamation is issued from the council 
chamber appointing a fast on the first day of the 
coming February. Thus did the Governor show his 
trust in Divine Providence and his belief in our 
present-day aphorism, "God helps those who help 
themselves." Roger Sherman in the following month 
procures a portion of this ammunition from New 
York; and measures are taken to import powder, 
some of which arrived at New London in the follow- 
ing April. The towns had been ordered, too, by 
the General Assembly at the October session of 
1774 to provide double the quantity of powder, 
balls and flints which, up to that time, had been re- 
quired by law. 

This same October session had adjourned until 



EXTRA SESSION OF ASSEMBLY 135 

such time as the Governor "should see cause to 
call it to meet again." In the following March 
he evidently saw cause, for a session was called at 
New Haven for that month ''by adjournment and 
special order of the Governor." Many military 
commissions are granted, new military companies 
formed, and some naval affairs regulated. The 
docket is also cleared of civil business. Other 
business of a kind new to this Assembly figures 
prominently in this session. It is evident that the 
Governor, in his earnest desire to prevent such 
violent treatment of Tories as we have seen in the 
previous year, had determined to refer all com- 
plaints and information regarding them to the 
General Assembly, to be legally and regularly dealt 
with. 

The wisdom of this course is evident from the 
fact that but one report can be found during this 
momentous year of a case in which the people 
took matters into their own hands, and this cannot 
be called a case in which personal violence was used. 
At the same time, after the ajournment of the first |^-».a 

Continental Congress in October, 1774, the Tory 
element in the western parts of Connecticut pro- 
nounced itself in such a way as to cause, perhaps, 
some concern, and certainly much indignation. 
The individual cases of Abraham Blackslee of 
New Haven, captain of a military company; of 
Isaac Quintard and Filer Dibble of Stamford, also 
captains, are duly referred to committees with 
instructions to report at the next session regarding 
the charges of Toryism against them. 



^^ fAA.\ 



136 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

The town of Ridgefield, little dreaming that in 
two years one of the fiercest fights of the Revolu- 
tion within the borders of Connecticut would take 
place on her soil, voted in town meeting on the 
sixth of February, among other things, "That it 
would be dangerous and hurtful to the inhabitants 
of this Town to adopt said [Continental] Con- 
gress's measures, and we hereby publickly disap- 
prove of, and protest against said Congress, and 
the measures by them directed, as unconstitutional, 
as subversive of our real liberties, and as countenanc- 
ing licentiousness." Newtown soon after adopted 
similar resolutions. With these two cases the 
General Assembly thus deals: 

"It being represented to this House, that the 
towns of Ridgefield and Newtown have come into and 
published certain resolutions injurious to the rights 
of this Colony, in direct opposition to the reported 
resolves of this House, and of dangerous tendency: 

*' Resolved; that Colo. Joseph Piatt Cook, and 
Colo. John Read be a committee to enquire into the 
truth of said representation, and how far any person 
or persons holding commissions under the govern- 
ment have been any ways active or concerned in 
promoting the measures taken by said towns; and 
report make of what they shall find to the General 
Assembly to be held at Hartford May next." 

The records are silent regarding the reports of 
this committee, nor was any action apparently taken 
regarding resolutions published later in Rivington's 
Gazette by the Reading Association, and still later 
by New Milford, all denouncing the Continental 



ROTAL MEASURES 137 

Congress. Before the May session at which the 
committee was to report, the Lexington alarm had 
spread through Connecticut, and was far more 
effective than any legislation in exterminating such 
sporadic cases of Toryism as those just referred to. 

In the meantime, the Earl of Dartmouth by 
command of the king had issued to each colonial 
governor in America the royal mandate by which 
it was expected that a second Continental Congress 
would be prevented, enjoining upon Trumbull, as 
on all the governors, to use his utmost endeavors 
"to prevent the appointment of deputies, and to 
exhort all persons to desist from such an unjusti- 
fiable proceeding." 

This order was doubtless summarily disposed of 
in the Governor's council. Certain it is that no 
thought of complying with it existed in the mind of 
the Governor or of any member of this body, and 
certain it is that Connecticut sent her full quota 
of representatives to the second, as to the first 
Continental Congress. The time had come, how- 
ever, to inform the Earl of Dartmouth of the posi- 
tion of Connecticut in the then existing critical 
state of affairs, and upon Governor Trumbull fell 
the duty of addressing a letter to the noble Earl. 
This letter was sent by vote of the General Assembly, 
having been regularly approved by vote of both 
houses, with the request that it be transmitted 
"to his Lordship as soon as opportunity will permit." 
The only inference to be drawn from the records 
regarding it is that the Governor, finding it a matter 
of official courtesy to write to the Earl of Dart- 



138 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

mouth, found the matter of such importance that 
he deemed it necessary to submit the draft of his 
letter to the General Assembly, in accordance with 
a long established custom. This letter forms such 
a striking example of the Governor's official cor- 
respondence that it seems best to reproduce it 
here in full, although it is to be found in print in 
numerous publications: 

"New Haven, March, 1775. 
"My Lord: I duly received your Lordship's letter 
of the loth of December last, enclosing his Most 
Gracious Majesty's speech to his Parliament and 
the addresses in answer thereunto, which I have 
taken the earliest opportunity to lay before the 
General Assembly of the Colony, and am now to 
return you their thanks for this communication. 

"It is, my Lord, with the deepest concern and 
anxiety that we contemplate the unhappy dissen- 
sions which have taken place between the Colonies 
and Great Britain, which must be attended with 
the most fatal consequences to both, unless speedily 
terminated. We consider the interests of the two 
countries as inseparable, and are shocked at the 
idea of any disunion between them. We wish for 
nothing so much as a speedy and happy settlement 
upon constitutional grounds, and cannot apprehend 
why it might not be effected if proper steps were 
taken. It is certainly an object of that importance 
as to merit the attention of every wise and good 
man, and the accomplishment of it would add 
lustre to the first character upon earth. 



LETTER TO EARL OF DARTMOUTH 139 

"The origin and progress of these unhappy dis- 
putes we need not point out to you: they are 
perfectly known to your Lordship. From apprehen- 
sions on one side, and jealousies, fears and dis- 
tresses on the other, fomented and increased by the 
representations of artful and designing men, un- 
friendly to the liberties of America, they have 
risen to that alarming height at which we now see 
them, threatening the most essential prejudice, if 
not entire ruin, to the whole Empire. On the one 
hand, we do assure your Lordship that we do not 
wish to weaken or impair the authority of the 
British Parliament in any matters essential to the 
welfare and happiness of the whole Empire. On 
the other, it will be admitted that it is our duty, 
and that we should be even highly culpable, if we 
should not claim and maintain the constitutional 
rights and liberties derived to us as men and English- 
men; as the descendants of Britons and members of 
an Empire whose fundamental principle is the 
liberty and security of the subject. British suprem- 
acy and American liberty are not incompatible 
with each other. They have been seen to exist 
and flourish together for more than a century. 
What now renders them inconsistent.? Or, if any- 
thing be further necessary to ascertain the one and 
limit the other, why may it not be amicably ad- 
justed, every occasion and ground of future con- 
troversy be removed, and all that has unfortunately 
passed be buried in perpetual oblivion .f' 

"The good people of this Colony, my Lord, are 
unfeignedly loyal and firmly attached to his Maj- 



I40 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

esty's person, family and government. They are 
willing and ready freely as they have formerly 
most cheerfully done upon every requisition made 
to them, to contribute to the utmost of their abili- 
ties to the support of his Majesty's government, 
and to devote their lives and fortunes to his serv- 
ice; and in the last war did actually expend in 
his Majesty's service more than four hundred 
thousand pounds sterling beyond what they re- 
ceived any compensation for. But the unlimited 
powers lately claimed by the British Parliament 
drove them to the borders of despair. These powers, 
carried into execution, will deprive them of all 
property, and are incompatible with every idea of 
civil liverty. They must hold all they possess 
at the will of others, and will have no property 
which they can, voluntarily and as freemen, lay 
at the foot of the throne as a mark of their affec- 
tion and devotion to his Majesty's service. 

"Why, my Lord, should our fellow-subjects in 
Great Britain alone enjoy the high honor and satis- 
faction of presenting their free gifts to their Sover- 
eign ? Or if this be a distinction in which they will 
permit none to participate with them, yet, in point 
of honour, it should be founded on the gift of their 
own property, and not of that of their fellow-sub- 
jects in the more distant parts of the Empire. 

'*It is with particular concern and anxiety that 
we see the unhappy situation of our fellow-subjects 
in the town of Boston in the Province of Massa- 
chusetts Bay, where we behold many thousands 
of his Majesty's virtuous and loyal subjects re- 



LETTER TO EARL OF DARTMOUTH 141 

duced to the utmost distress by the operation of 
the Port Act, and the whole Province thrown into 
a state of anarchy and confusion by the Act for 
changing the constitution of the Province and 
depriving them of some of their charter rights. We 
are at a loss to conceive how the destruction of the 
East India Company's tea could be a just or rea- 
sonable ground for punishing so severely thousands 
of innocent people who had no hand in that transac- 
tion, and that even without giving them any op- 
portunity to be heard in their own defence. 

"Give us leave to recommend to your Lordship's 
most serious and candid attention the unhappy 
case of that distressed people, and in effect of all 
the Colonies, whose fate seems to be involved in 
theirs, and who are therefore most anxiously dis- 
tressed for them. Permit us to hope that by your 
Lordship's kind and benevolent interposition, some 
wise and happy plan will be devised, which may 
relieve us from our present anxieties and restore 
that harmony between Great Britain and the 
Colonies which we all most ardently wish for, and 
which alone can render us truly happy. 

"I am, my Lord, in behalf of the Governor and 
Company of Connecticut, my Lord, your Lord- 
ship's most obedient and humble servant." 

Thus, in earnest endeavor honorably, reasonably 
and peacefully to regain the rights of his people, 
did the Governor labor to the utmost, hoping that 
success might attend his efforts. 



CHAPTER XIV 

THE LEXINGTON ALARM EMBASSY TO GENERAL 

GAGE TREATMENT OF THE AMBASSADORS BY MASSA- 
CHUSETTS DIFFERENCES SETTLED PREPARA- 
TIONS FOR WAR 

THE extra session of the General Assembly- 
adjourned on the tenth of March, to meet 
again on the thirteenth of April *' unless 
the Governor, or in his absence the Deputy 
Governor shall see cause to give notice that the 
public business of the Colony does not require the 
convention of the Assembly at that time." Such 
notice the Governor must have given, to be fol- 
lowed by an entirely different notice but a few 
days later, when the Lexington alarm reached 
Connecticut, spreading like wildfire from town to 
town, and reaching the Governor on the twentieth. 
Just how or where it reached him, it is impos- 
sible to say in the absence of contemporary- 
records and in the presence of many conflicting 
accounts, all apparently based on varying tradi- 
tions or theories. There is no doubt that the news 
of the Lexington fight reached him promptly, 
either carried to him by Israel Putnam from 
Brooklyn to Lebanon, or by some other swift 
rider reaching Norwich, where one account says 
the Governor received the news. Connecticut men 
hurried at once to the front on receipt of the news, 

142 



THE LEXINGTON ALARM 143 

in companies and squads, without organization, and 
without waiting for orders; to return in a few days 
to join or give place to the organized force for which 
the Provincial Congress of Massachusetts was call- 
ing. News comes from Putnam under date of the 
twenty-first that six thousand men are expected 
from Connecticut "to be at Cambridge as speedily as 
possible." The Governor calls a special meeting 
of the General Assembly for the twenty-sixth of 
April, which was doubtless as soon as a full session 
could convene at Hartford in those days of slow 
communication and transportation. 

What may have been the message or address of 
the Governor to this session we shall probably never 
know. That it was a message unswerving in its 
adherence to the rights of the people, and that 
its words were the words of patriotism tempered 
by wisdom, we may be sure. 

The first action of the session, after some unim- 
portant military regulations, and the more im- 
portant placing of an embargo upon the exportation 
of provisions needed for the army, was to appoint 
William Samuel Johnson and Erastus Wolcott to 
"wait upon his Excellency Governor Gage with the 
letter written to him by his honour our Governor 
by the desire of this Assembly, and confer with 
him on the subject contained in said letter and re- 
quest his answer." 

This action was probably upon the motion of 
Roger Sherman, as the resolve is in his handwriting. 
How far the Governor may have been instrumental 
in this movement it is impossible to say. His letter 



144 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

of the previous month to the Earl of Dartmouth 
so far met the approval of the General Assembly 
that the policy of appeal to the highest authorities 
seemed still the proper policy for Connecticut, in 
which colony there still lingered that traditional 
conservatism which was soon to disappear in work 
for the common cause. Governor Trumbull's letter 
to Gage reads as follows: 

"Hartford, April 28, 1775. 

"Sir: The alarming situation of publick affairs 
in this country, and the late unfortunate transac- 
tions in the Province of the Massachusetts Bay, 
have induced the General Assembly of this Colony, 
now sitting in this place, to appoint a committee 
of their body to wait upon your Excellency, and 
to desire me, in their name, to write to you rela- 
tive to those very interesting matters. 

"The inhabitants of this Colony are intimately 
connected with the people of your Province, and 
esteem themselves bound by the strongest ties of 
friendship, as well as of common interest, to regard 
with attention whatever concerns them. You will 
not, therefore, be surprised that your first arrival 
at Boston with a body of his Majesty's troops, for 
the declared purpose of carrying into execution 
certain acts of Parliament, which, in their apprehen- 
sion, were unconstitutional and oppressive, should 
have given the good people of this Colony a very 
just and general alarm. Your subsequent proceed- 
ings in fortifying the town of Boston, and other 
miltary preparations, greatly increased their ap- 



LETTER TO GENERAL GAGE 145 

prehensions for the safety of their friends and breth- 
ren. They could not be unconcerned spectators 
of their sufferings in what they esteemed the common 
cause of this country; but the late hostile and 
secret inroads of some of the troops under your 
command into the heart of the country, and the 
violences they have committed, have driven them 
almost to a state of desperation. They feel now, 
not only for their friends, but for themselves and 
their dearest Interest and connections. 

"We wish not to exaggerate: we are not sure of 
every part of our Information, but by the best in- 
telligence that we have yet been able to obtain, 
the late transaction was a most unprovoked attack 
upon the lives and property of his Majesty's sub- 
jects; and It is represented to us that such out- 
rages have been committed as would disgrace even 
barbarians, and much more Britons, so highly 
famed for humanity as well as bravery. 

"It is feared, therefore, that we are devoted to 
destruction, and that you have it in command and 
Intention to ravage and desolate the country. 
If this is not the case, permit us to ask, why have 
these outrages been committed.? Why is the town 
of Boston now shut up.? To what end are all the 
hostile preparations that are daily making.? And 
why do we continually hear of fresh destinations 
of troops to this country .? The people of this Colony, 
you may rely upon it, abhor the idea of taking up 
arms against the troops of their sovereign, and 
dread nothing so much as the horrors of a civil war. 
But, sir, at the same time, we beg leave to assure your 



146 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

Excellency, that as they apprehend themselves 
justified by the principle of self defence, they are 
most firmly resolved to defend their rights and 
privileges to the last extremity; nor will they be 
restrained from giving aid to their brethren if any 
unjustifiable attack is made upon them. 

"Be so good, therefore, as to explain yourself 
upon this most important subject, so far as is con- 
sistent with your duty to our common sovereign. 
Is there no way to prevent this unhappy dispute 
from coming to extremities.'* Is there no alternative 
but absolute submission, or the desolations of war.^" 
By that humanity which constitutes so amiable a 
part of your character, and for the honour of our 
sovereign and the glory of the British empire, we 
entreat you to prevent it if possible. Surely it is 
to be hoped that the temperate wisdom of the 
Empire might even yet find expedients to restore 
peace, that so all parts of the empire may enjoy 
their particular rights, honours and immunities. 
Certainly this is an event most devoutly to be 
wished; and will it not be consistent with your 
duties to suspend the operations of war on your 
part, and enable us on ours to quiet the minds of 
the people, at least till the result of some further 
deliberations may be known. 

"The importance of the occasion will no doubt 
sufficiently apologize for the earnestness with which 
we address you, and any seeming impropriety which 
may attend it, as well as induce you to give us 
the most explicit and favorable answer in your 
power. 



HARSH TREATMENT OF EMBASSY 147 

"I am, with great esteem and respect, in betialf 
of the General Assembly, 

"Sir, your most obedient servant. 
"To his Excellency Thomas Gage, Esq.*' 

Pursuant to the resolve of the General Assembly, 
Johnson and Wolcott undertook their embassy to 
General Gage, against Johnson's advice and in- 
clinations, if not against Wolcott's. They found 
Gage in Boston with some difficulty, and obtained 
an interview with him and a reply to the Governor's 
letter. Upon their return, they found their horses 
missing, and found themselves in the hands of a 
sheriff who haled them before the Provincial Con- 
gress of Massachusetts, where Johnson was re- 
quested to open and read the letter of General 
Gage, which he declined to do, as it was addressed 
to Governor Trumbull. Schooled in the diplomacy of 
his five years in London, Johnson handed the letter, 
sealed, to the President of the Provincial Congress, 
saying to him that the Connecticut committee were 
in his power, and that he could open the letter if 
he thought he had a right to do so, at the same time 
reminding him that Connecticut was not under the 
jurisdiction of Massachusetts. Intercolonial courtesy 
prevailed, and after a delay of some two hours, the 
letter was returned to Johnson unopened, and the 
Connecticut ambassadors were allowed to proceed 
to their homes. 

This rather high-handed proceeding appears to 
have been the result of information volunteered to 
the Massachusetts Congress by General Israel Put- 



148 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

nam and Colonel Elisha Porter. We are left to 
imagine from Putnam's previous proceedings that 
anything like negotiations for peace would be dis- 
tasteful to him, and that he improved the oppor- 
tunity for showing to the Connecticut ambassadors 
the temper of the Massachusetts Congress. 

The letter which Gage sent in reply to the Gov- 
ernor's queries was, of course, a vindication of the 
policy which he had pursued and intended to pur- 
sue. A few extracts from the letter will show how 
the more important of the Governor's questions were 
answered, so far as they were answered at all.^ 

"You ask, why is the town of Boston now shut 
up? I can only refer you for an answer to those 
bodies of armed men who now surround the town 
and prevent all access to it. The hostile prepara- 
tions you mention are such as the conduct of the 
people of this Province has rendered it prudent to 
make, for the defence of those under my com- 
mand 

"You inquire, is there no way to prevent this 
unhappy dispute from coming to extremities.'' Is 
there no alternative except by absolute submission 
or the desolations of war.^ I answer, I hope there 
is. The King and Parliament seem ready to hold 
out terms of reconciliation, consistent with the 
honor and interest of Great Britain and the rights 
and privileges of the Colonies. They have mutually 
declared their readiness to attend to any real griev- 
ances of the Colonies, and to afford them any just 

^ The letter in full may be found in Colonial Records of Connecticut, vol. 
14, p. 443, and in Force's American Archives, 4th series, vol. 2, p. 482. 



LETTER FROM GENERAL GAGE 149 

and reasonable indulgence which shall, in a dutiful 
and constitutional manner, be laid before them; 
and his Majesty adds, it is his ardent wish that this 
disposition may have a happy effect on the temper 
and conduct of his subjects in America. I must 
add, likewise, the Resolution of the 27th of Febru- 
ary, on the grand dispute of taxation and revenue, 
leaving it to the Colonies to tax themselves, under 
certain conditions. Here is surely a foundation for 
an accommodation, to people who wish a reconcilia- 
tion rather than a destructive war between countries 
so nearly connected by the ties of blood and inter- 
est : but I fear the leaders of this Province have been, 
and still are, intent only on shedding blood. . . . 

"You ask whether it will not be consistent with 
my duty to suspend the operations of war on my 
part .^ I have commenced no operations of war but 
defensive; such you cannot wish me to suspend, 
while I am surrounded by an armed country, who 
have already begun, and threaten further to prose- 
cute an offensive war, and are now violently de- 
priving me, the King's troops, and many others of 
the King's subjects under my immediate protec- 
tion, of all the conveniences and necessaries of 
life, with which the country abounds. But it must 
quiet the minds of all reasonable people when I 
assure you that I have no disposition to injure or 
molest quiet and peaceable subjects; but on the 
contrary shall esteem it my greatest happiness 
to defend and protect them against every species 
of violence and oppression." 

The General Assembly had adjourned on the 



I50 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

sixth of May without waiting to hear the report 
of Johnson and Wolcott on their embassy to General 
Gage, and so his reply must have been delivered 
to Governor Trumbull personally at Hartford. It 
was soon followed by an official letter from the 
Provincial Congress of Massachusetts, under date 
of May second, enclosing depositions regarding the 
battle of Lexington, warning Connecticut to place 
no confidence in General Gage and closing with these 
words : 

"It is evidently the business of the general, to 
subjugate these and the other Colonies; and, we 
think, there are the most convincing proofs that, 
in order to effect it, he is constantly aiming to sus- 
pend their preparations for defence, until his rein- 
forcements shall arrive; but, although we have 
been under great apprehension with respect to the 
advantages which the conference of Connecticut 
with General Gage might give our enemies, yet 
we have the greatest confidence in the wisdom and 
vigilance of your respectable assembly and colony, 
as well as of our other sister colonies; and have 
reason to hope, that, while he fails in his intentions 
to lull and deceive this continent, he can never 
accomplish his designs to conquer it." 

In the meantime a committee from Massachusetts 
had been sent to Connecticut, as to some of the 
other colonies, to hasten preparations for war, if 
they should need hastening, and to this committee 
a much more argumentative letter was sent con- 
cerning the embassy to General Gage. Much time 
of the Governor and his council was doubtless spent 



DIFFERENCES SETTLED 151 

with this committee, which consisted of Jedediah 
Foster, Timothy Danielson and John BHss. A 
greater than these appears to have been in Connec- 
ticut at or about the same time in the person of 
John Adams, who writes to his wife on the thirtieth 
of April, from Hartford : 

"The Assembly of this Colony is now sitting at 
Hartford, We are treated with great tenderness, 
sympathy and respect. Everything is doing by 
this Colony that can be done by men, both for New 
York and Boston. . . ." 

Governor Trumbull replies to the official letter 
of the Provincial Congress of Massachusetts 
promptly, on the fourth of May, saying: 

*'Your letter of the 2d of May instant is received. 
You need not fear our firmness, deliberation and 
unanimity, to pursue the measures which appear 
best for our common defence and safety, and in 
no degree to relax our vigilant preparations for 
that end, and to act in union and concert with our 
sister colonies. We shall be cautious of trusting 
promises which it may be in the power of any one to 
evade. We hope no ill consequences will attend our 
embassy to General Gage. We should be glad to 
be furnished with the evidence, duly authenticated, 
concerning the attack, on the 19th of April last, 
at Lexington, which it is presumed you have taken. 
Although we are at a distance from the most dis- 
tressing scenes before your eyes, yet we are most 
sensibly affected with the alarming relations of 
them." 

Thus closed this little episode. It appears, from 



152 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

the correspondence of others regarding it, to have 
been a surprise to Connecticut that Massachusetts 
should take exception to her action in the matter, 
and it was generally believed that she misunder- 
stood the temper and spirit in which the embassy 
was undertaken. At all events, the two colonies 
settled such differences as existed at the time in a 
perfectly amicable and satisfactory way, thanks, 
in great measure, to the temperate and conciliatory 
attitude of Governor Trumbull, who might have 
gone into a vindication of the course of Connecticut 
had he seen fit, and had he fully concurred in that 
course, of which there must always exist some doubt. 

It is hardly necessary to say that the visit of the 
Massachusetts committee was not needed for the 
purpose of creating patriotic sentiment in Con- 
necticut. Every action of the General Assembly at 
its special session in April looked to the military 
organization of the colony, and the forwarding of 
the six regiments for which Massachusetts had asked. 
With her usual prudence Connecticut saw well to 
the equipment of these troops. Captain Joseph 
Trumbull, the Governor's eldest son, is appointed 
Commissary General for the colony. Bills of credit 
are issued to the sum of fifty thousand pounds, with 
taxes laid to meet the issue at maturity. 

With the Governor it was a time of stress and 
strain. His position officially was that of "Captain 
General and Governor in Chief", involving the 
direction of the military forces of the colony in 
addition to his other oflficial duties, to which was 
added that of Chief Naval Officer of the colony. 



CHAPTER XV 

TICONDEROGA THE COUNCIL OF SAFETY POWDER 

FOR BUNKER HILL — CORRESPONDENCE WITH WASH- 
INGTON THE FIRST AND ONLY MISUNDERSTANDING 

BETWEEN WASHINGTON AND TRUMBULL SEARS's 

RAID THE CONNECTICUT *'dESERTERS" 

WHILE Connecticut was undertaking in- 
dependent negotiations with General 
Gage, the sole result of which appears 
to have been needless alarm in Massachusetts, 
the General Assembly of Connecticut had, as 
we have seen, mobilized the troops of the colony 
for the assistance of her neighbors. There 
was, too, even before the letter to General Gage 
was despatched, a secret movement in progress 
for the first offensive military operation of the 
Revolution, the capture of Fort Ticonderoga. Thus 
this unique colony, under the leadership of Trum- 
bull, exhausted every resource which was available 
under the circumstances; by negotiations for peace, 
preparations for war, and the first aggressive act 
of the American Revolution. The capture of Fort 
Ticonderoga on the tenth of May of this year was 
due entirely to Connecticut enterprise and energy, 
even though the force which effected the capture 
was composed largely of "Green Mountain boys", 
under the leadership of Ethan Allen of Connecticut 
birth, solely because it was imprudent to march a 

153 



154 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

force from Hartford to Ticonderoga owing to the 
need of secrecy in the expedition. The treasury of 
Connecticut furnished the money for the enterprise, 
upon the individual obligations of its projectors; 
and an important factor in the success was the 
sanction and counsel of the Governor and his Council, 
of which there is ample proof in contemporary 
documents.^ 

It needs no stretch of the imagination to reach 
the conclusion that this expedition was in every 
way promoted by the Governor, and that he re- 
joiced in its success. His views of the matter may 
best be learned from the following extract from his 
letter of May twenty-fifth to the Provincial Con- 
gress of Massachusetts, congratulating that body 
on this important capture. 

*'The necessity of securing and maintaining the 
posts on the lakes for the defence of the frontiers 
becomes daily more evident from the iterated 
intelligence we receive of the plan formed by our 
enemies to distress us by inroads of Canadians and 
savages from the Province of Quebec upon the ad- 
jacent settlements. The enclosed copy of a letter 
from our delegates attending at New York, to 
communicate measures with the Provincial Con- 
gress in that city, throws an additional light on 
this subject, and is thought worthy to be commu- 
nicated to you ; and whilst the designs of our enemies 
against us fill with concern, we cannot omit to 
observe the smiles of Providence upon us in reveal- 
ing their wicked plans, and hitherto prospering the 

* Force's American Archives, 4th series, vol. 2, pp. 507, 558. 



riCONDEROGA 155 

attempts of the colonies to frustrate them. With 
a humble reliance on the continuance of divine favor 
and protection in the cause of the justice of which 
a doubt cannot be entertained, the General As- 
sembly of this Colony are ready to co-operate with 
the other colonies for their common defence, and to 
contribute their proportion of men and other nec- 
essaries for maintaining the posts on the frontiers, 
or defending or repelling invasions in any other 
quarter, agreeable to the advice of the Continental 
Congress." 

Captain Edward Mott of Preston, Connecticut, 
had been despatched to Philadelphia by the Gov- 
ernor with the news of the capture of Ticonderoga, 
in which he had held the position of adeader, issuing 
to Ethan Allen his warrant for holding the fort 
after its bloodless capture, "agreeable to the power 
and authority to us given by the Colony of Con- 
necticut", while awaiting orders from that colony 
or from the Continental Congress. This second 
Congress, it will be remembered, opened its session 
in Philadelphia on the morning of the capture, and 
although Allen may have been a little premature 
in demanding the surrender in the name of the Con- 
tinental Congress, then to sit for the second time, 
the session and the capture must have occurred 
within a few hours of each other. 

The constant demands upon the Governor's time 
and attention were seen to be so urgent as to re- 
quire a specially constituted council to assist him 
in his arduous and important duties. The regularly 
constituted council could not be convened promptly 



IS6 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

enough from various portions of the State to meet 
the sudden and imperative calls which were con- 
tinually arising. For this reason, the General As- 
sembly, at its May session of 1775, appointed 
Matthew Griswold, Eliphalet Dyer, Jabez Hunting- 
ton, Samuel Huntington, William Williams, 
Nathaniel Wales, Junior, Jedediah Elderkin, Joshua 
West and Benjamin Huntington, "a Committee to 
assist the Governor when the Assembly is not 
sitting, to order and direct the marches and stations 
of the inhabitants inlisted and assembled for the 
especial defence of the Colony, or any part or parts 
of them, as they shall judge necessary, and to give 
order from time to time for furnishing and supplying 
said inhabitants with every matter and thing that 
may be needful to render the defence of the Colony 
effectual." 

This act evidently contemplated that the meetings 
of this committee should be held at Lebanon, three 
of its members besides the Governor being residents 
of that town, and the other members, with the excep- 
tion of Deputy Governor Griswold, being residents 
of the then adjoining towns of Norwich and Wind- 
ham. 

This committee soon became known as the 
Council of Safety, and was continued during the 
entire war, holding at Lebanon alone nearly twelve 
hundred meetings during that period. The little 
building in which these meetings were held, and 
which was Governor Trumbull's store and office, is 
known to this day as the War Office, and stands, 
repaired and restored to its original condition, under 



THE COUNCIL OF SAFETY 157 

tlie ownership of the Connecticut Society of Sons 
of the American Revolution. The Governor's native 
town of Lebanon was in these days a place of no 
small importance, standing on the direct road to 
Boston, and ranking fourteenth in population, 
eleventh in taxable property and third in the number 
of men who responded to the Lexington alarm. 
Notwithstanding the numerous special sessions of 
the General Assembly, it is hardly too much to say 
that the proceedings within the walls of the humble 
little gambrel-roofed War Office were of equal if 
not of greater importance to those of the Assembly 
itself. The times brought continually emergencies 
and sudden demands, and the Council of Safety 
alone could supply them. The records of the body 
may be rather prosaic in their matter-of-fact state- 
ments of routine and action; but taken in connec- 
tion with the correspondence and events of the 
time, they are at times little short of dramatic. 

The first meeting of the Council of Safety was 
held on the seventh of June, just a week after the 
adjournment of the General Assembly, to act upon 
the urgent calls from Massachusetts for powder, 
which the Governor presented to the Council. As 
a result of this meeting, fifty barrels of one hundred 
and eight pounds each were ordered to be forwarded 
at once from the stores of this provident colony, 
which furnished more than one half the entire 
supply of powder which was used by the Americans 
ten days later at the battle of Bunker Hill. 
Although William Williams, the Governor's son-in 
law, was appointed clerk of the Council, and 



iS8 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

although the official record of this meeting is in his 
handwriting, it is a noteworthy fact that loose 
leaves of the records for the first two months of its 
sessions are in Governor Trumbull's handwriting 
differing only slightly in phraseology, but not in 
substance. 

At this same memorable first meeting of the 
Council of Safety, "it was moved by his Honor the 
Governor" that the whole or a part of Colonel 
Samuel Holden Parsons's regiment, then stationed 
at New London, be ordered to march at once to 
the front, to join the forces under command of 
General Spencer. Although this regiment had been 
stationed at New London for the defense of Con- 
necticut, two companies were sent forward in time 
to take part in the then impending battle of Bunker 
Hill; and on the very day of the battle the remain- 
ing six companies were ordered to join the other 
two at the seat of war. 

The news of the battle reached Lebanon at about 
ten o'clock on the evening of the eighteenth of 
June, and the Council of Safety convened at once 
on the nineteenth. Measures were taken not only 
to perfect the organization of the Connecticut 
troops in the field, but to bring them under the 
immediate command of the Commander in Chief, 
for the time being. General Artemas Ward. Orders 
were issued by vote of the Council, and doubtless 
upon motion or suggestion of the Governor, com- 
manding all Connecticut generals to subject them- 
selves to the command of General Ward. So con- 
cerned had the colony now become for the general 



LETTERS TO WASHINGTON 159 

welfare that the neighboring colonies of Rhode 
Island and New Hampshire were urged to issue 
similar orders. 

The short command of General Ward was soon 
to cease, for Congress had already appointed Wash- 
ington Commander in Chief of the Continental 
Army, and he was at the time on his way to Cami- 
bridge to assume his command. It is barely possible 
that Governor Trumbull had met him nineteen years 
before when, in 1756, he passed through Connec- 
ticut as a young colonel with his retinue after his 
conference with Governor Shirley at Boston. How- 
ever this may be, a correspondence and personal ac- 
quaintance were now to begin which form.ed a factor 
second to none in the active prosecution of the 
war of the Revolution. The correspondence begins 
on the thirteenth of July when, at a meeting of the 
Council of Safety, the Governor presents for ap- 
proval two letters which he has addressed to Wash- 
ington; the first of which congratulates him on his 
appointment, and the second refers to dissatis- 
faction of Connecticut generals over the appoint- 
ments made by the Continental Congress, which 
degraded General Spencer and General Wooster 
from the rank they had each held under their pro- 
vincial commissions, and advanced General Putnam 
above both of them, though he had up to that time 
been below them in provincial rank. On this same 
thirteenth of July, General Spencer had reached 
Lebanon with loud complaints of his treatment by 
Congress, and was with much difficulty "persuaded 
to return to the army, and not at present quit the 



i6o JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

service as he proposed." He is made the bearer of 
these two important letters to Washington. After 
congratulating him on his appointment by Congress, 
Trumbull writes: 

"They have with united voice appointed you to 
the high station you possess. The Supreme Director 
of all events hath caused a wonderful union of 
hearts and counsels to subsist among us. Now, 
therefore, be strong and very courageous. May the 
God of the Armies of Israel shower down the blessings 
of his divine providence on you; give you wisdom 
and fortitude ; cover your head in the day of battle 
and danger; add success; convince our enemies of 
their mistaken measures; and that all their attempts 
to deprive these Colonies of their inestimable con- 
stitutional rights and liberties are injurious and 
vain." 

Thus the Governor at the age of sixty-five writes 
to the Commander in Chief of the age of forty- 
three. There is little or no doubt that Washington 
had been present at the session of Congress where 
by unanimous order that body expressed to Gov- 
ernor Trumbull "the high sense they have of [his] 
your important services to the United Colonies at 
this important crisis." To his letter of congratula- 
tion Washington replies, thanking him, and adding: 
"As the cause of our common country calls us 
both to active and dangerous duty, I trust that 
Divine Providence, which wisely orders the affairs 
of men, will enable us to discharge it with fidelity 
and success. The uncorrupted choice of a brave 
and free people had raised you to deserved eminence. 



PREPARATIONS FOR WAR i6i 

That the blessing of health, and the still greater 
blessings of long continuing to govern such a people 
may be yours is the sincere wish, Sir, of your" etc. 

Regarding the dissatisfaction of General Spencer 
and others with appointments by the Continental 
Congress he writes, and there is no doubt that 
Trumbull agrees with him : 

**As the Army is upon a general establishment, 
their right to supersede and contract a Provincial 
one must be unquestionable, and in such a cause I 
should hope every post would be deemed honourable 
which gave a man an opportunity to serve his 
country." 

From this time forward, the correspondence begins 
to be quite active. Powder is needed, and supplied 
from Connecticut. The Middletown lead mines 
are exploited as a source of supply for bullets, and 
the stations and marches of newly raised levies of 
troops are designated. At first it seemed best to 
retain these troops in Connecticut, where their drill 
and organization could be perfected, and where 
they could be ordered to repel any advance of the 
enemy on New York, which then appeared to be 
threatened. 

On the fifth of September Trumbull wrote to 
Washington in reply to his letter of the second in- 
forming him of the apparent need of these troops 
to protect the coast towns of Connecticut, and ex- 
plaining that, for this reason, he was detaining them 
for a time. Washington's letter of the second had 
referred to the danger from the British fleet, which, 
however, he considered as past, and had positively 



i62 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

directed that the new levies be sent forward im- 
mediately to fill the place of troops then destined for 
Canada. 

The letter of Trumbull in reply appears to have 
led to the only shadow of a misunderstanding which 
occurred between him and Washington during their 
long and active corrrespondence. Washington sent 
on the eighth a peremptory order to Trumbull to 
send these troops forward, without regard to the 
movements of the enemy, informing him that the 
reasons for detaining them in Connecticut no longer 
existed, and that they were needed to fill the places 
of other continentals who were to leave in two days 
from that time. He also informs Trumbull that 
*'by a resolution of Congress the troops on the Con- 
tinental establishment were not to be employed 
for the defence of the coasts, or of any particular 
province, the militia being deemed competent for 
that service." 

Trumbull's sensitiveness to real or supposed afi^ront 
is manifested in his reply, in which, after explaining 
the delay in receiving the letter, and speaking of 
stationing the troops on the Connecticut coast by 
Washington's earlier orders he adds: 

*'I am surprised that mine of the 5th inst. was 
not received, or not judged worthy of notice, as no 
mention is made of it. 

"Stonington has been attacked, and severely 
cannonaded, but by Divine Providence marvel- 
lously protected. 

"New London and Norwich are still so menaced 
by the ministerial ships and troops, that the militia 



TEMPORART MISUNDERSTANDINGS 163 

cannot be thought sufficient for their security, and 
it is necessary to throw up some intrenchments. 
We are obhged actually to raise more men for their 
security, and for the towns of New Haven and 
Lyme. I hoped some of the new levies might have 
been left here till these dangers here were over, 
without injury to your operations. I own that it 
must be left to your judgment. Yet it would have 
given me pleasure to have been acquainted that you 
did consider it. I thank Divine Providence and 
you for this early warning to great care and watch- 
fulness, that so the union of the colonies may be 
settled on a permanent and happy basis. 

"I have before me your more acceptable letter 
of the 9th instant. The necessities of the Colony 
to supply our two armed vessels, to furnish the men 
necessarily raised for the defence of our seaports 
and coasts, and to raise the lead ore, which appears 
very promising, prevent our being able to spare more 
than half a ton |^of powder], which is ordered for- 
ward with expedition. Before the necessity for 
raising more men appeared, we intended to send a 
ton. 

"You may depend on our utmost exertions for 
the defence and security of the constitutional rights 
and liberty of the Colonies, and of our own in par- 
ticular. None has shown greater forwardness, and 
thereby rendered itself more the object of minis- 
terial vengeance. 

"I am, with great esteem and regard for your 
personal character," etc. 

To this letter Washington replies: 



i64 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

"Cambridge, 21 September, 1775. 
"Sir, 

"It gives me real concern to observe by yours of 
the 15th instant, that you should think it necessary 
to distinguish between my personal and public charac- 
ter, and confine your esteem to the former. Upon a 
reperusal of mine of the 8th instant, I cannot think 
the construction you have made one;^ and unless 
it was that I should have hoped that the respect I 
really have, and which I flattered myself I had mani- 
fested to you, would have called for the most favor- 
able. In the disposition of the Continental troops, 
I have long been sensible that it would be impossible 
to please, not individuals merely, but particular 
provinces, whose partial necessities would occasion- 
ally call for assistance. . . . You may be assured. 
Sir, nothing was intended that might be construed 
Into disrespect; and at so interesting a period, 
nothing less ought to disturb the harmony so neces- 
sary for the happy success of our public operations. 

"The omission of acknowledging, in precise terms, 
the receipt of your favor of the 5th instant was purely 
accidental. The subject was not so new to me as to 
require long consideration. I had had occasion 
fully to deliberate upon it, in consequence of ap- 
plications for troops from Cape Ann, Machias, New 
Hampshire and Long Island, where the same neces- 
sity was as strongly pleaded, and. In the last tw^o 
instances, the most peremptory orders were neces- 

^ Sparks gives this sentence in the following words: "I cannot think it 
bears the construction you have put upon it", which is probably not an au- 
thentic copy from the original. 



THE EPISODE CLOSED 165 

sary to prevent the troops from being detained. 
I foresaw the same difficulty here. I am by no 
means insensible to the situation of the people on 
the coast. I wish I could extend protection to all; 
but the numerous detachments necessary to remedy 
the evil, would amount to a dissolution of the army, 
or make the most important operations of the cam- 
paign depend upon the piratical expeditions of two 
or three men-of-war and transports. 

"The spirit and zeal of the colony of Connecticut 
are unquestionable; and whatever may be the 
hostile intentions of the men-of-war, I hope their 
utmost efforts can do little more than alarm the 
coast. 

" I am, with great esteem and regard for both your 
personal and public character. Sir", etc. 

Trumbull's reply assures Washington that the 
unpleasant episode is ended, and that he is "per- 
suaded that no such difficulty will any more happen." 
He deprecates jealousies and disputes between the 
colonies, and shows, as he has repeatedly shown, his 
earnest desire to promote the welfare of their com- 
mon cause. 

The result of this episode shows clearly, in the 
light of future correspondence, that these two men, 
on whom so much depended, understood each other 
fully from this time forward, and worked long and 
earnestly together in perfect confidence and har- 
mony. The early days of the organization of the 
Continental Army were days fraught with diffi- 
culties which it is sometimes hard to understand at 
this distance of time. As an example of these 



i66 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

difficulties, we have seen how Trumbull and his 
Council appeased General Spencer, and later, in the 
broad-minded spirit of true patriotism, how Trum- 
bull and Washington quickly cleared away the 
only and slight cloud of misunderstanding which 
ever came between them. 

The time had now come when the Tories or 
Loyalists were regarded as internal foes. That war 
had begun there could be no doubt. In November 
of this momentous year it happened that the Gov- 
ernor's native colony undertook the suppression of 
the Tory press of James Rivington of New York, 
whose utterances through his Gazette found wide 
circulation and ready sympathy among the Tories 
in that city and the vicinity. The expedition for 
silencing this publication was planned by Isaac 
Sears, of New York, who recruited a force of some 
eighty men in New Haven and the vicinity for 
the purpose. Incidentally, they captured at West- 
chester the Reverend (afterwards Bishop) Samuel 
Seabury, Judge Jonathan Fowler and "Lord" Na- 
thaniel Underbill. At Mamaroneck they burned a 
small British sloop, and on the following day pro- 
ceeded to New York, where they drew up with 
fixed bayonets at Rivington's printing house, and 
seized his types and other printing materials, which 
rather radical censorship of his press prevented 
him from making further issue of his mischievous 
publications for nearly two years. 

The General Committee of the City and County 
of New York found its dignity rather insulted by 
these violent proceedings, and addressed a letter 



SEJRS'S RAID 167 

to Governor Trumbull requesting that Rivington's 
property be returned to the Chairman of this General 
Committee. The Governor's previous experience in 
the case of the Tory, Francis Green of Boston, ap- 
pears to have stood him in good stead in this in- 
stance. Solemn as was the good Governor's face 
under the weighty cares and responsibilities of the 
time, it is difficult to imagine how he could have 
penned his decorous and courteous reply without 
at least a twinkle in those calm eyes, if not some 
muscular contractions suggestive of a chuckle. "The 
proper resort for a private injury," he replies, ''must 
be to the courts of law, which are the only juris- 
dictions that can take notice of violences of this 
kind." He also calls the attention of the General 
Committee to the fact that Sears is a respectable 
member of their own city and congress, and is 
therefore amenable to their jurisdiction alone. The 
Governor's correspondents had already gravely acted 
on this suggestion by citing Sears and others to 
appear before the Committee "to answer for their 
conduct in entering the City this day [November 
23d] with a number of Horse, in a hostile manner", 
which, with true Dutch dignity, the mover of the 
summons asserts that he considers "a breach of the 
Association." 

History is silent regarding Sears's obedience to 
this summons. There is certainly no reason to be- 
lieve that Rivington's types were ever returned to 
him; for, until the British occupied New York, 
and for some time later, his Gazette was conspicuous 
by its absence from the publications of the day. 



i68 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

The year 1775 closed with a very unhappy mili- 
tary experience for Connecticut which gave the 
Governor much concern, even though it bore no 
serious results. The Connecticut troops had en- 
listed in May and June for six months, and, as 
Washington writes, under date of December second, 
**they were requested and ordered to remain, as 
the time of most of them would not be out until the 
loth, when they would be relieved." Some of these 
men, however, left for their homes without obtain- 
ing a regular discharge. Their officers had, as they 
supposed, persuaded them to wait until new re- 
cruits could fill their places, and had represented to 
Washington that the men would remain. The 
men who left thus summarily met with only scorn 
and ridicule on their way home and on their arrival, 
and were only too glad to hide their faces or return 
to camp. Washington, in his letter of the second, 
speaks of them as deserters, the Council of Safety 
uses the same term, but declines to deal with them 
as such, owing to the critical state of the times and 
the immediate need for new recruits. 

The Governor writes to Washington expressing 
*' grief, surprise and indignation" at the conduct of 
these men, which he can only excuse by a custom of 
the French war by which soldiers were considered 
free to leave the service when their terms of enlist- 
ment expired. He asks for any suggestions or even 
commands from Washington regarding these men, 
and closes by saying: 

"Your candor and goodness will suggest to your 
consideration that the conduct of our troops is not 



CASE OF THE DESERTERS 169 

a rule whereby to judge of the temper and spirit 
of our Colony." 

Washington decHnes to offer any suggestion to 
the Governor regarding this disagreeable affair, 
which, though it created much concern and indig- 
nation at the time, appears to have been due to 
only a small number of men. At a later date, the 
General Assembly voted, in some instances, full 
pay to men who left the army at this time in the 
belief that they had a right to do so. 



CHAPTER XVI 

THE CHILDREN OF THE FAMILY — JOSEPH, THE COM- 
MISSARY GENERAL HIS EARLY DEATH JONA- 
THAN AND HIS DISTINGUISHED SERVICES DAVID, 

THE HOME V^ORKER JOHN, THE SOLDIER AND ARTIST 

FAITH AND HER SAD DEATH — MARY AND HER 

PATRIOTIC HUSBAND 

UNDER the home Influences by which they 
were surrounded, it naturally follows that 
Governor Trumbull's four sons became 
actively engaged in the service of their country, 
from the beginning of the Revolution, and that his 
two daughters became the wives of two distin- 
guished patriots. 

The eldest son, Joseph, had barely time to begin 
his duties in the field as Commissary General of 
Connecticut when the attention of Washington was 
drawn to the need of a Commissary General for 
the Continental Army. His keen insight found 
Connecticut better equipped in her commissariat 
than any of the other colonies, and on the tenth of 
July, he writes, in his first letter from Cambridge 
to the Continental Congress : 

"I esteem it, therefore, my duty to represent 
the inconvenience which must unavoidably ensue 
from a dependence on a number of persons for 
supplies, and submit it to the consideration of the 

Congress, whether the publick service will not be 

170 



JOSEPH, COMMISSART GENERAL 171 

best promoted by appointing a Commissary-General 
for these purposes. We have a striking instance of 
the preference of such a mode in the establishment 
of Connecticut, as their Troops are extremely vv^ell 
furnished under the direction of Mr. Trumbull, and 
he has at different times assisted others with various 
articles. Should my sentiments happily coincide 
with those of your Honours on this subject, I beg 
leave to recommend Mr. Trumbull as a very proper 
person for this department." 

This recommendation appears to have been m.ade 
entirely on Washington's observation of Joseph 
Trumbull's personal merits. The appointment was 
immediately made by Congress, and the new Com.- 
missary General, whose entire life seems to have been 
a struggle against misfortunes and difficulties, com- 
menced a career whose cares, worries and fatigues 
brought him to an early grave in three years. The 
record of the difficulties he encountered is too long 
to tell here, and has never been fully told.^ The 
difficulty of buying provisions without money; the 
reconciling of jealousies among various other com.- 
missaries, some appointed by Congress, and others 
by their own colonies; the difficulties of transpor- 
tation of supplies; the interference of Congress in 
the organization of the department, — all these and 
many more troubles confronted him from the 
beginning to the end of his brief career. The in- 
scription on his tombstone in Lebanon truly recites 

^In "New London County Historical Society's Records and Papers", vol. 
2, p. 329, will be found a brief sketch of the career of the first Commissary 
General. 



172 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

the *'he fell a victim" to the "perpetual cares and 
fatigues" of his office. His toilsome career was 
inconspicuous and soon forgotten, but he died for 
his country as truly and heroically as the soldier 
who falls in the forefront of battle. His death at 
the age of forty-two proved to be one of his father's 
saddest losses for his country's cause. 

The life of Jonathan Trumbull, Junior, the next 
son, resulted in more distinguished public services 
and offices than that of any of his brothers. His 
first appointment was that of Deputy Paymaster- 
general for the Northern Department of the Con- 
tinental Army, a position which he held from July 
28, 177s, until the death of his brother Joseph in 
1778. In November of that year he was appointed 
Comptroller of the Treasury of the United States, 
which, under Roger Sherman's plan of organization, 
placed him at the head of this department. In 
1780, he was appointed first aide and secretary to 
Washington, a position which he held until the close 
of the war. He afterwards held the positions of 
Representative and Senator from Connecticut in 
the Congress of the United States, from 1789 to 
1796, when he resigned his senatorship to take the 
position of Deputy Governor of his native State, 
becoming Governor in 1798, and remaining in this 
office until his death in 1809. 

The third son, David, performed services for his 
country which are less conspicuous in the public 
records, but were continuous and arduous, from the 
beginning to the end of the war. It fell to his lot 
to remain at home, where he appears to have been 



JOHN, SOLDIER AND ARTIST 173 

most needed in the absence of his brothers; but 
as early as in August, 1775, we find that he is credited 
with "going express three times to the army" to 
superintend the transportation of provisions and 
to dehver despatches. He was active also in col- 
lecting arms and ammunition, and succeeded in 
having a large number of old muskets repaired 
and made serviceable — a much more important 
service in the days of the Revolution than it might 
be now. He was also employed in securing pro- 
visions under contract both for the commissary and 
quartermasters' departments. He has left behind 
him a mass of accounts and correspondence which 
show, to some extent, the nature and constancy of 
his services.^ 

The career of the youngest son, John, is described 
in full in his autobiography and in other publica- 
tions drawn from that work. It was a career more 
striking and perhaps more brilliant than that of 
any of his brothers, due to the spirited character 
of the man, and to his inborn taste for art. He 
himself forbids us to call this genius, for he says, "I 
am disposed to doubt the existence of such a prin- 
ciple in the human mind." However this may be, 
he is remembered to-day, principally if not solely, 
as a pioneer in American art. 

His taste for drawing developed at so early an age, 
that during his college course it gave much concern 
to President William Kneeland of Harvard. In a 
letter to Governor Trumbull he says, after speaking 
highly of the young man: "I find he has a natural 

^ Manuscript collections of the Connecticut Historical Society. 



174 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

talent for limning. As a knowledge of that art 
will probably be of no use to him, I submit to your 
consideration whether it would not be best to en- 
deavor to give him a turn to the study of perspec- 
tive, the knowledge of which will at least be a genteel 
accomplishment, and may be greatly useful in future 
life." 

To this the Governor readily assents, having al- 
ready formed and expressed to his son a similar 
opinion. And even after the Revolution was over, 
and the young man is urged by his father to take 
up the study and practice of law, the father listens 
to his arguments for the life of an artist and with 
his characteristic grave humor reminds him that 
"Connecticut is not Athens", — and never again 
attempts to influence the choice of his career. 

He commenced his military life as an aide to 
General Joseph Spencer in the First Regiment of 
Connecticut troops, which, as he tells us, "started 
into view as by magic, and was on its march for 
Boston before the ist of May" [1775]. Washing- 
ton's attention is attracted to him from a plan of 
the enemy's works, which — thanks to his talent 
for drawing — he had made by stealth as oppor- 
tunity ofl^ered. He is appointed second aide to 
the Commander in Chief, and remains with the 
army until after the evacuation of Boston, which 
event he describes as an eye-witness. In June, 
1776, he is promoted to the position of adjutant 
to General Horatio Gates, and performs some im- 
portant service in the Northern Department, es- 
pecially in showing that an enemy occupying Mount 



JOHN RETURNS COMMISSION 175 

Defiance could render Fort Ticonderoga untenable, 
a fact which he proved by experiment, and General 
Burgoyne by actual practice, in a way to cause the 
speedy evacuation of Ticonderoga by St. Clair. 

Young Trumbull had been appointed adjutant 
with the rank of colonel by General Gates, who 
was authorized to make the appointment. Con- 
gress was slow in issuing the commission, and when 
it reached the young officer it was found to be dated 
some three months later than the appointment by 
Gates. This he regarded as "an insuperable bar" 
to accepting it, and he returned the commission in a 
curt letter to the Honorable John Hancock, Presi- 
dent of Congress, informing him that "a soldier's 
honor forbids the idea of giving up the least preten- 
sion to rank." This terminated his regular con- 
nection with the army, although he volunteered in 
the following year as an aide in the unsuccessful 
attempt to regain Newport, Rhode Island, from the 
British. Judging from his father's frequently ex- 
pressed sentiments in similar cases, we must con- 
clude that he did not regard his young son of 
twenty-one as justified in his resignation. 

This decision of the spirited young man left him 
free to resume the study and practice of his favorite 
art of painting, into which he entered with zeal. 
Finding but little encouragement and few advan- 
tages for perfecting himself in the art in Lebanon, 
or even in Boston, he went In 1780 to London, with 
letters of introduction to Benjamin West, under 
whose auspices he was much helped and encouraged 
in the pursuit of his chosen profession. 



176 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

With varying fortunes and through interruptions 
and obstacles, he continued his career to the close 
of his long life. Foremost among his numerous 
works are his paintings representing the men and 
scenes of the American Revolution, some of which 
are in the Capitol at Washington, and others, to a 
large number, in the Yale Art Gallery. His work 
is recognized to-day as an important contribution to 
American art. 

The early death of Faith, the eldest daughter 
of Governor Trumbull, forms one of the saddest 
features of the family history. In May, 1766, she 
married Colonel (afterwards General) Jedediah Hunt- 
ington, who served faithfully and with distinction 
through the entire war. At the time of the battle 
of Bunker Hill she was visiting the army near 
Boston, with a party of young friends, awaiting 
the arrival of her husband, whose regiment was 
then on its march. The consequences and scenes 
of the battle so alarmed her sensitive nature, 
through solicitude for the fate of her husband and 
brothers, that she became deranged, in which con- 
dition she lingered with some hopes of recovery 
until the following November, when, in one of 
her more acute attacks, she committed suicide. 
This was indeed a sad blow to her husband and 
family, and the letters of Governor Trumbull to his 
bereaved son-in-law show the affection in which he 
held her, and his grief at her loss in these trying 
times. On February 26, 1776, he writes: 

"The world, after all, is a little pitiful thing, not 
performing any one promise it makes us, and every 



THE rOUNGESr DAUGHTER 177 

day taking away and annulling the joys of the past. 
A few days ago I had a dear affectionate daughter 
Faithy. Alas! she is no more with us. Let us 
comfort one another, and if possible study to add as 
much goodness, love, and friendship to each other 
as death has deprived us of in her." 

Mary, the Governor's fourth child and youngest 
daughter, married William Williams, a steadfast 
and noted patriot, and a signer of the Declaration 
of Independence. He was a man of radical views, 
both in politics and religion, a firm believer in the 
justice of his country's cause, and fully convinced 
that any disaster to our arms could be attributed 
to the wrathful punishments of the Supreme Ruler, 
as the following quotation from his letter of Septem- 
ber 20, 1776, to his father-in-law regarding the 
evacuation of New York by the Americans will 
show : 

"These Events, however signal advantage gained 
by our oppressors, and the distress to which our 
Army and Country are and must be subjected in 
consequence of them, are loud speaking Testi- 
monies of the Displeasure and Anger of Almighty 
God against a sinful People, louder than Sevenfold 
Thunder. Is it possible that the most obdurate 
and stupid of the Children of America should not 
hear and tremble.?" 

As an instance of his outspoken patriotism, it 
is recorded of him that when he spoke of having 
incurred the penalty of hanging by signing the 
Declaration of Independence, one of his neighbors 
replied that no such penalty was in store for him, 



178 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

as he had not entered the service of his country. 
''Then, sir," said Wilhams, "you deserve to be 
hanged for not doing your duty." 

There is no doubt that the married Hfe of WilHam 
Wilhams and Mary Trumbull was a happy one, 
for they were in accord on the great questions of 
the day, and contributed much to the comfort of 
their parents in Lebanon, which was their lifelong 
place of residence. 

Meantime, it should be remembered that during 
nearly all of the dark days of the Revolution, the 
faithful, devoted mother was at her post in Lebanon, 
with her brave, inspiring farewells to her sons who 
had gone to the front, her kind and friendly aid 
to her neighbors, and her sympathetic and helpful 
share in the weighty burden of cares and responsi- 
bilities under which her husband labored. Spared 
to him through forty-five years of married life, she 
did not live to rejoice with him in the final triumph 
of the cause to which he had devoted himself, but 
lived to share in its sternest and hardest tasks 
with him, as his helpmeet and comfort. 

Thus it was that Governor Trumbull became the 
head of a family of stanch patriots, every one of 
whom contributed materially to the cause of Amer- 
ican liberty and independence. It seems best to 
group them here, though their careers are, to a great 
extent, connected with the events which we are 
still briefly to consider. 



CHAPTER XVII 

RENEWED CALLS FOR TROOPS — THE NEW YORK 

EXPEDITION — Washington's acknowledgments — 

MORE TROOPS THE GOVERNOR'S PROCLAMATION 

independence — GOVERNOR FRANKLIN A PRISONER 
ROW-GALLEYS SENT TO NEW YORK 

THE year 1776 opened with calls for seven 
regiments from Connecticut; and within 
a fortnight we find Governor Trumbull 
issuing four different proclamations for recruit- 
ing these regiments. Of these, two were wanted 
for Special service in New York, under General 
Charles Lee; one for Canada, and four for the 
camp near Boston. These regiments were promptly 
furnished by reenlistments and new enlistments, 
five of the six which were raised in the previous 
April being reorganized at once. 

The special service of the two newly raised regi- 
ments for New York is worthy of passing notice, 
if only to show the promptness with which they were 
raised, and the contributory incompetence of the 
Continental Congress and General Charles Lee in 
making their services of little or no avail. The 
special service for which they were destined was 
the military occupation of New York. Lee, in 
whom there was so much misplaced confidence at 
the time, represented to Washington and to Gov- 
ernor Trumbull the need of an attack upon the 

179 



i8o JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

Tories of Long Island, and of formal possession of 
New York City, as imperative. Washington's good 
judgment led him to consult John Adams as to the 
jurisdiction of the Commander in Chief in the 
matter, and the advisability of the expedition. 
Fortified by Adams' plainly expressed views, he 
proceeded to call on Governor Trumbull, early in 
January of this year, for two regiments, while the 
Continental Congress called on New Jersey for 
minute men, and ordered an attack on the Tories 
of Long Island. Colonel Waterbury's Connecticut 
regiment, which appeared promptly, was ordered by 
Congress to Oyster Bay to cooperate with New 
Jersey troops for this expedition, but the order was 
countermanded almost as soon as given, and was 
understood by Lee, if he reports himself truly, to 
be an order for this regiment to disband. But, 
Lee reports to Washington, ** Governor Trumbull, 
like a man of sense and spirit, ordered it to be re- 
assembled." Waterbury then marched his regi- 
ment to New York, where he found some difficulty 
in getting winter quarters, which he rather peremp- 
torily occupied. 

And as if the Continental Congress had not given 
the Governor and Council trouble enough, Lee 
proceeds to send home the other Connecticut regi- 
ment — Colonel Andrew Ward's — because, for- 
sooth, he understood that the Provincial Congress 
of New York had authority over this regiment 
which superseded his own. No sooner had Colonel 
Ward with his regiment reached the disbanding 
point than Lee writes to Governor Trumbull to 



MORE TROOPS SUPPLIED 



I8l 



reorganize it If disbanded and send It forward at 
once, the little misunderstanding regarding the 
authority of the Provincial Congress of New York 
having been satisfactorily arranged or explained 
away by a committee from the Continental Congress 
which arrived on the scene. 

The principal recorded result of the whole ex- 
pedition appears to have been that Lee was given 
an opportunity to Indulge in gasconading to an 
extent which must have satisfied even him for the 
time being, and that he was enabled to pose as a 
hero by being borne on a litter from Stamford to 
New York while suffering from an attack of gout. 
Some fortifications were built about the city and its 
approaches by his direction, and the Connecticut 
regiments had some share In the work, but the serious 
work in New York for Connecticut and other troops 
was to come, as events proved, seven months later. 

The promptness of Connecticut in meeting the 
requests of Washington for men, through his corre- 
spondence with Governor Trumbull, is best shown 
by the following extract from a letter written by 
Washington on January 20, 1776. Speaking of the 
regiment furnished by Connecticut for service in 
Canada, he says. 

''The early attention which you and your honour- 
able Council have paid to this important business, 
has anticipated my requisition and claims, in a 
particular manner, the thanks of every well-wishing 
American.'* 

That it was not only in furnishing men but In 
furnishing materials that Connecticut was active. 



i82 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

may be learned from a few more extracts from 
Washington's letters. All requests and requisitions 
which he made upon Connecticut were addressed 
to Governor Trumbull, while in the case of other 
colonies such requests were usually addressed to 
their general assemblies, or provincial congresses. 

Writing to Governor Trumbull of the lack of 
powder for the army before Boston, which, with 
the lack of men, rendered an aggressive movement 
unwise, Washington says : 

"This matter is mentioned to you In confidence. 
Your zeal, activity and attachment to the cause, 
renders It unnecessary to conceal It from you. 
Our real stock of powder, which, after furnishing the 
Militia, (unfortunately coming In without, and will 
require upwards of fifty barrels,) and completing 
our other troops to twenty-four rounds a man, 
(which are less, by one-half, than the Regulars 
have,) and having a few rounds of cannon-cart- 
ridges fitted for immediate use, will leave us not 
more than one hundred barrels In store for the 
greatest emergency. ..." 

Here again Washington finds that Governor Trum- 
bull has anticipated his wants, for three days later 
he writes to the Governor: 

"I have just received a letter from J. Huntington, 
Esq., with the agreeable news of his having for- 
warded two tons of powder to this camp, by your 
order. Accept, sir, of my thanks for this seasonable 
supply." 

The bloodless victory of the following March, 
resulting In the evacuation of Boston by the British, 



EVACUATION OF BOSTON 183 

called for less of Washington's scant supply of 
powder than was expected; nevertheless, quite a 
quantity of Connecticut powder must have been 
burned In the frequent cannonades which disguised 
the real movements of the Continental Army under 
the superb generalship of Washington. Of Trum- 
bull's rejoicing In this victory — the last of such 
rejoicing In this memorable year — we learn by the 
following extracts from his letter of March twenty- 
fifth to Washington : 

"I do most heartily congratulate you on your 
success, that, after a long. Incessant, and persever- 
ing fatigue, you have happily caused our enemies 
to evacuate the town of Boston, to leave that strong 
fortress they built when they trampled on the prop- 
erties of the Inhabitants of that distressed town, 
profaned the sacred places dedicated to divine wor- 
ship and service, and designed the ruin of the lives, 
properties, and liberties of our whole country. 
The lustre of the British arms Is tarnished. By a 
shameful and ignominious retreat they have lost 
their honour, — Indeed, none could be maintained or 
gained in so wicked and scandalous a cause." 

From Boston the scene of military operations soon 
changes to New York, and after some correspon- 
dence with Trumbull, resulting in the sending of 
two regiments of Connecticut militia to the new 
field of operations, Washington himself goes to this 
field, by way of Norwich, Connecticut. In this 
town the two patriots meet on the thirteenth of 
April at the house of General Jabez Huntington, 
and here they discuss matters of importance re- 



i84 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

garding the coming campaign. Lead in the form 
of bullets is wanted from the Middletown mines, 
arms repaired under the direction of the Governor's 
son David are urgently needed, and more than all, 
men are needed to make up the deficiencies in the 
Continental Army from which men had been quite 
freely drawn to serve in the northern campaign. 
All these matters receive the careful and prompt 
attention of the Governor and his Council, and soon 
afterwards the May session of the General Assembly 
of Connecticut convenes. 

This session is a memorable one if only for the 
reason that its record omits the time-honored 
Latin heading designating the year of the reign of 
the sovereign of Great Britain, whose arms no 
longer embellish the public acts of the session. His 
Majesty's name no longer appears upon the legal 
writs issued from this time forth, but in its stead 
appears the authority of the Governor and Company 
of the Colony of Connecticut, soon to be called the 
State of Connecticut. 

No respite is given the busy Governor during the 
short interval between the regular May session of 
this year and the special session which he called on 
the fourteenth of the following June. During this 
interval the Council of Safety remains at Hartford 
holding frequent meetings to audit accounts, to 
provide for naval affairs, and to discuss various 
matters of public interest. Naval affairs especially 
occupy much of the time and attention of the 
Council. Privateers are fitted out, the building 
of a man-of-war is being hurried forward at Say- 



PLANS FOR INDEPENDENCE 185 

brook, and the row-galleys built at Norwich and 
Haddam are christened respectively the Shark and 
the Crane, and made ready for the service to which 
in a few months they will be called on the Hudson 
River. 

The special June session of the General Assembly 
lost no time in instructing the Connecticut dele- 
gates to the Continental Congress to declare for 
independence. On the first day of the session, 
after a preamble of no uncertain sound, it was 

^^ Resolved unanimously by this Assembly, That 
the Delegates of this Colony in General Congress 
be and they are hereby instructed to propose to 
that respectable body, to declare the United States, 
absolved from all allegiance to the King of Great 
Britain, and to give the assent of this Colony to 
such declaration when they shall judge it expedient 
and best, and to whatever measures may be thought 
proper and necessary by the Congress for forming 
foreign alliances, or any plan of operation for neces- 
sary and mutual defence. ..." 

Immediately following this resolve, is an act for 
raising two battalions to join the Continental Army 
in Canada, and for raising seven battalions for New 
York, showing, as usual, that deeds, not words, 
constituted the motto of Connecticut under the 
inspiration of her Governor. To give force to these 
acts, a proclamation was issued on the eighteenth of 
June which, by no great straining of definition, has 
been called Connecticut's Declaration of Indepen- 
dence, and which, singularly enough, did not re- 
appear in print from the time when it was pub- 



i86 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

lished as a broadside in 1776 until 1890, when it was 
published in the Colonial Records of Connecticut 
by Doctor Charles J. Hoadley. It seems well to 
give it in full here as a specimen of one of the most 
urgent and, for the time, impressive of the Gover- 
nor's proclamations which have been preserved to 
us: 

"By the Honorable Jonathan Trumbull Esq; 
Governor and Commander in Chief of the English 
Colony of Connecticut in New England. 

"A PROCLAMATION 

"The Race of Mankind was made in a State of 
Innocence and Freedom, subjected only to the laws 
of GOD THE CREATOR, and thtough his rich Goodness, 
designed for virtuous Liberty and Happiness here 
and forever; and when moral Evil was introduced 
into the World, and Man had corrupted his ways 
before god. Vice and Iniquity came in like a Flood, 
and Mankind became exposed, and a prey to the 
Violence, Injustice and Oppression of one another. 
GoD, in his great Mercy, inclined his People to form 
themselves into Society, and to set up and establish 
civil Government for the Protection and Security 
of their Lives and Properties from the Invasion of 
wicked Men: But through Pride and Ambition, the 
Kings and Princes of the World, appointed by the 
People the Guardians of their Lives and Liberties, 
early and almost universally degenerated into 
Tyrants, and by Fraud or Force betrayed and 
wrested out of their Hands the very Rights and 
Properties they were appointed to protect and 



A PROCLAMATION 187 

defend. But a small part of the Human Race 
maintained and enjoyed any tolerable degree of 
Freedom. Among these happy Few the Nation of 
Great Britain was distinguished, by a Constitution 
of Government wisely framed and modelled, to 
support the Dignity and Power of the Prince, for 
the protection of the Rights of the People; and 
under which that Country in long Succession, 
enjoyed great Tranquility and Peace, though not 
unattended with repeated and powerful Efforts, 
by many of it's haughty Kings, to destroy the 
constitutional Rights of the People, and establish 
arbitrary Power and Dominion. In one of those 
convulsive struggles, our Forefathers having suffered 
in that, their native Country, great and variety 
of Injustice and Oppression, left their dear Connec- 
tions and Enjoyments, and fled to this then in- 
hospitable Land, to secure a lasting Retreat from 
civil and religious Tyranny. 

"The GOD of Heaven favored and prospered 
their Undertaking — made Room for their Settle- 
ment — increased and multiplied them to a very 
numerous People, and inclined succeeding King's 
to indulge them and their Children for many Years, 
the unmolested Enjoyment of the Freedom and 
Liberty they fled to inherit: But, an unnatural 
King has risen up — violated his sacred Obligations, 
and by the Advice of evil Counsellors, attempted to 
wrest from us, their Children, the sacred Rights 
we justly claim, and which have been ratified and 
established by solemn Compact with, and recog- 
nized by, his Predecessors and Fathers, King's of 



i88 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

Great Britain — laid upon us Burdens too heavy 
and grievous to be born, and issued many cruel 
and oppressive Edicts, depriving us of our natural, 
lawful, and most important Rights, and subjecting 
us to the absolute Power and Control of himself, 
and the British Legislature, against which we have 
sought Relief by humble, earnest and dutiful Com- 
plaints and Petitions: But Instead of obtaining 
Redress, our Petitions have been treated with 
Scorn and Contempt, and fresh Injuries heaped 
upon us, while hostile Armies and Ships are sent to 
destroy and lay waste our Country. In this dis- 
tressing Dilemma, having no Alternative but ab- 
solute Slavery, or successful Resistance; this, and 
the United American Colonies, have been constrained 
by the over-ruling Laws of Self-Preservation, to 
take up Arms for the Defence of all that is sacred 
and dear to Freemen, and make their solemn Appeal 
to Heaven for the Justice of their Cause, and resist 
Force by Force. 

"God almighty has been pleased, of his infinite 
Mercy, to succeed our Attempts, and give us many 
Instances of signal Success and Deliverance; but 
the Wrath of the King is still increasing, and not 
content with before employing all the Force which 
can be sent from his own Kingdom to execute his 
cruel Purposes, has procured, and is sending all the 
Mercenaries he can obtain from foreign Countries, 
to assist in extirpating the Rights of America, and 
with their's, almost all the Liberty remaining among 
Mankind. 

"In this most critical and alarming Situation, 



A PROCLAMATION 189 

this, and all the Colonies, are called upon, and 
earnestly pressed, by the Honorable CONGRESS 
of the American Colonies, united for mutual De- 
fence, to raise a large additional Number of their 
Militia and able Men, to be furnished and equipped 
with all possible Expedition, for defence against the 
soon expected Attack and Invasion of those who 
are our Enemies without a Cause. In chearful 
Compliance with which Request, and urged by 
Motives the most cogent and important that can 
affect the human Mind, the General Assembly of 
this Colony have freely and unanimously agreed 
and resolved, that upwards of Seven Thousand 
able and effective Men be immediately raised, 
furnished and equipped, for the great and interesting 
Purposes aforesaid. And not Desirous that any 
should go to a Warfare at their own Charges, (though 
equally interested with others) for Defence of the 
great and all-important Cause for which we are 
engaged, have granted large and liberal Pay and 
Encouragements, to all who shall voluntarily under- 
take for the Defence of themselves and their Country, 
as by their Acts may appear. 

"I DO THEREFORE, by and with the Advice of 
the Council, and at the desire of the Representatives 
in General Court assembled, issue this PROCLA- 
MATION, and make the solemn Appeal of said 
Assembly to the Virtue and public Spirit of the 
good People of this Colony. Affairs are hastening 
fast to a Crisis, and the approaching Campaign 
will, in all Probability, determine forever the fate 
of America. If this should be successful on our 



I90 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

Side, there is little to fear on Account of any other. 
Be exhorted to rise, therefore, to superior Exertions 
on this great Occasion; and let all that are able and 
necessary, shew themselves ready in Behalf of 
their injured and oppressed Country, and come 
forth to the Help of the lord against the Mighty, 
and convince the unrelenting Tyrant of Britain 
that they are resolved to be free. Let them step 
forth to defend their Wives, their little Ones, their 
Liberty, and everything they hold sacred and dear, 
to defend the cause of their Country, their Religion 
and their god. Let every one to the utmost of their 
Power, lend a helping Hand to promote and forward 
a Design on which the Salvation of America now 
evidently depends. Nor need any be dismayed: 
the Cause is certainly a just and glorious one. 
God is able to save us in such Way and Manner as 
he pleases, and to humble our proud Oppressors. 
The Cause is that of Truth and Justice: he has 
already shown his Power in our behalf, and for 
the Destruction of many of our Enemies. Our 
Fathers trusted in him and were delivered. Let us 
all repent, and thoroughly amend our Ways, and 
turn to him, put all our Trust and Confidence in 
him — in his Name go forth, and in his Name set 
up our Banners, and he will save us with temporal 
and eternal Salvation. And while our Armies are 
abroad, jeoparding their Lives in the high Places 
of the Field, let all who remain at Home, cry mightily 
to god for the Protection of his Providence, to 
shield and defend their lives from Death, and to 
crown them with Victory and Success. And in the 



INDEPENDENCE 191 

Name of the said General Assembly, I do hereby 
earnestly recommend it to all, both Ministers and 
People, frequently to meet together for social 
Prayer to almighty god, for the out-pouring of his 
blessed Spirit upon this guilty Land — that he 
would awaken his People to Righteousness and 
Repentance — bless our Councils — prosper our 
Arms, and succeed the measures using for our 
necessary Self-Defence — disappoint the evil and 
cruel Devices of our Enemies — preserve our pre- 
cious Rights and Liberties — lengthen out our Tran- 
quility, and make us a People of his Praise, and 
blessed of the lord, as long as the Sun and Moon 
shall endure. 

And all the Ministers of the Gospel in this Colony, 
are directed and desired to publish this Procla- 
mation in their several Churches and Congrega- 
tions, and to enforce the Exhortations thereof by 
their own pious Example and public Instructions. 

*' GIVEN under my hand, at the Council Chamber in 
Hartford, the i8th day of June, Anno Domini 1776. 
"JONATHAN TRUMBULL." 

On the twelfth of the following July the news of 
the adoption of the Declaration of Independence 
was officially received by the Council of Safety. 
It was "largely discoursed" by that body, but it 
was decided to postpone action regarding it until 
the next regular session of the General Assembly. 
The Governor evidently took its adoption as a 
matter of course, after the resolutions adopted re- 
garding it at the May session, and the course pur- 



192 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

sued by that session in ignoring the sovereign of 
England for the first time. He therefore did not 
see fit to call an extra session simply for proclaiming 
officially something which had been already prac- 
tically proclaimed and adopted. 

This same Fourth of July, 1776, was made memor- 
able to the Governor and Council of Safety by the 
appearance before them of Governor William Frank- 
lin of New Jersey, who had been sent by the Con- 
tinental Congress *' under guard to Governor Trum- 
bull, who is desired to take his parole; and if Mr. 
Wm. Franklin refuse to give his parole, that Gover- 
nor Trumbull be desired to treat him agreeable to 
the resolutions of Congress respecting prisoners." 
He had been described by the Convention of New 
Jersey as "a virulent enemy to this country", and 
after several changes of residence under parole, he 
was at last placed in confinement, owing to his 
attempts to circulate Lord Howe's olive-branch 
proclamations and various similar proceedings. After 
an enforced residence in Connecticut for about two 
years, he was at last exchanged; and from the time 
of his exchange he ceased to be a political factor in 
the American Revolution, warned, no doubt, by 
his experience in Connecticut. 

Meantime, the seven battalions for New York 
are being raised and equipped under the inspiration 
of the Governor's proclamation, and seven well 
organized regiments of Connecticut militia are sent 
to New York for service under Washington, and 
at his special request. It is a busy time, too, in 
naval affairs. The row-galleys Whiting and Crane, 



NAVAL AFFAIRS 193 

soon to be followed by the Shark, are sent to New 
York to make trouble for the British fleet on the 
Hudson. Captain Harding, with his brig Defence, 
reports sundry prizes taken to Boston to avoid 
recapture; and Long Island Sound is as thoroughly 
patrolled as possible by the odd craft of the im- 
provised Connecticut navy, resulting in the capture 
of quantities of provisions intended for the enemy, 
all of which is faithfully reported by the Governor 
to his constant correspondent, Washington. So 
important had this matter become, both from the 
capture of merchant vessels by the enemy, and the 
illicit trade carried on by ''evil minded persons", 
that the Governor issued orders at this time for the 
detention of all vessels laden with provisions until 
proper examination could be made, or the Con- 
tinental Congress or the provincial Congresses having 
jurisdiction should be notified of the hazard of 
capture by the enemy, and give their orders to the 
vessels under their control. 



CHAPTER XVIII 

DARK DAYS URGENT CALLS FOR TROOPS TRUM- 

BULL's active MEASURES MILITIA REGIMENTS DE- 
SPATCHED TO NEW YORK — DEMANDS OF THE NORTH- 
ERN ARMY — Trumbull's relations to schuyler 
— supplies and men hurried forward — sec- 
tional JEALOUSIES 

FROM the time we are now considering, the 
darkest days of the American Revolution 
begin. The anxious patriots are looking 
forward with a solicitude which in the light of 
subsequent events it is difficult for us to under- 
stand, to the general engagement impending at 
New York. We have seen by the Governor's procla- 
mation of June eighteenth that it was then believed 
that the coming campaign would "in all probabil- 
ity determine the fate of America." This belief was 
the result of correspondence with Washington and 
with Congress, a correspondence in which the 
urgent need of men was set forth in the most im- 
pressive terms. 

Again the active exertions of the Governor in 
raising troops and forwarding them to the front 
anticipate Washington's urgent demands. His 
promptness and activity are best explained in his 
own words in a letter to Washington written on 

July 6, 1776: 

194 



LETTER TO WASHINGTON 195 

"Sir: I wrote this day to the Continental Congress 
that the ancient laws of this Colony enable the 
Colonels of the Militia to call out their respective 
regiments upon any alarm, invasion, or appearance 
of the enemy, by sea or land, giving notice to the 
Captain-General or Commander-in-Chief for the 
time being, of the occasion thereof. This, with a 
general order to them to call out their regiments 
upon notice from General Washington, or the Com- 
mander-in-Chief for the time being, to march to his 
assistance, may supersede the necessity of any new 
regulation in respect to the Militia, at least until 
the next Assembly, as it is very inconvenient for 
them to come together at this busy season." 

In accordance with this " ancient law of the Colony " 
which the Governor fits to the occasion, he issues 
general orders to the commanding officers of the 
five Connecticut regiments stationed nearest to the 
New York border to hold themselves in readiness 
to move as Washington may direct. The regiments 
of Connecticut "Lighthorse" are also reported to 
be "moving on fast" towards New York, where 
upon their arrival it is found necessary to disband 
them, owing to the absence of forage and the un- 
willingness of the men and officers to serve without 
their horses. 

Before Washington had received the letter in- 
forming him of the orders given to the five regiments 
of militia, he had, on the seventh of July, written 
Governor Trumbull, giving the latest intelligence 
received from the enemy, which showed that their 
force already assembled and daily expected would 



196 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

be more formidable than it was at first supposed to 
be, and adding: 

"The interests of America are now in the balance, 
and it behooves all attached to her sacred cause, 
and the rights of humanity, to hold forth their ut- 
most and most speedy aid. I am convinced nothing 
will be wanting in your power to effect," 

Within a month from this time the situation be- 
came still more alarming. Washington writes to 
Governor Trumbull on the seventh of August that 
the British forces concentrating at New York by 
the most reliable accounts reached the number of 
thirty thousand, while the number of American 
soldiers fit for duty was 10,514 men, mostly raw 
troops, scattered over a distance of some fifteen miles. 

To this alarming letter Trumbull replies: 

"Your favor of the 7th instant by Mr. Root, and 
the intelligence it contains, has given me great 
concern and anxiety. The soon-expected strength 
of the enemy and the weakness of your army were 
equally unforeseen and surprising. . . . 

"Immediately upon receipt of your letter I 
summoned my Council of Safety and ordered nine 
regiments of our militia, in addition to the five 
Western regiments, fourteen in the whole, to march 
without loss of time and join you, under the com- 
mand of Oliver Wolcott, Esq., colonel of the Nine- 
teenth Regiment, as their brigadier-general, who 
is appointed and commissioned to that office. These 
orders are accompanied with the most pressing 
recommendation of speedily carrying them into 
execution. . . . 



CONNECTICUT TROOPS 197 

"I have likewise proposed that companies of 
volunteers, consisting of able-bodied men not in 
the militia, should associate and march to your 
assistance under officers they should choose, and 
have promised them like wages and allowance of 
provisions, etc., as the Continental Army receive. 
Some such companies are formed, and expect more 
will be. Whatever their number may be, they will 
be ordered to join some one of our militia regiments, 
and submit themselves to the command of their 
field officers while they continue in service. 

"Colonel Ward's regiment is on the march to 
join. I am far from trusting merely in the justice 
of our cause ; I consider that as a just ground to hope 
for the smiles of Heaven on our exertions, which 
ought to be the greatest in our power." 

From all the correspondence with Washington, 
it appears that twenty-one regiments of Connecticut 
militia were sent forward to New York, in addition 
to the Continental troops of the State already in 
the service. The old Connecticut hero, Putnam, 
is placed in command at the disastrous battle of 
Long Island, in which the Americans were out- 
numbered two to one. The services of Connecticut 
men in this battle, in the masterly retreat from 
Brooklyn Heights, and in the subsequent retreat 
through New York and New Jersey, were active and 
important. History cannot forget the brave Knowl- 
ton who fell at the head of his gallant band in the 
battle of Harlem Heights and the sacrifice of Nathan 
Hale will always form an example of the purest, 
self-forgetting patriotism which history records. 



198 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

All this important and engrossing service formed, 
however, only a portion of the weighty cares and 
responsibilities under which the veteran Governor 
of Connecticut labored at this time. The demands 
which the northern army under General Schuyler 
was making upon him through the gloomy and 
anxious northern campaign of 1776 were constant 
and of vital importance. The enlistment of Con- 
necticut men for this campaign was sadly impeded 
by the prevalence of smallpox in the northern army, 
and much of Trumbull's correspondence with Wash- 
ington and Schuyler refers to the prevention of this 
scourge by the process of inoculation, and by separat- 
ing the infected from the immunes and disinfected. 
Trumbull writes to Schuyler on the fifth of July 
of this year: "The smallpox in our northern army 
carries with it much greater dread than our enemies." 
He sends Doctor Ely to consult with Schuyler's 
doctors, and to report upon the real state of affairs, 
in the hope that one so well acquainted with the 
disease and its treatment may be able to reassure 
the timid on his return, and to advise means of 
protection in camp. 

At this time the relations between Trumbull and 
Schuyler appear to be quite intimate. Ship car- 
penters are needed for the seemingly impossible 
task of building a navy from the forests of New 
York and Vermont, and are promptly sent forward 
from Connecticut upon Schuyler's request to the 
Governor. Axes are needed to fell the trees of these 
forests, and one thousand good axes "ground and 
helved" are sent from Connecticut within a month 



TRUMBULL AND SCHUYLER 199 

from the date of Schuyler's letter asking for them. 
In this letter he says to Governor Trumbull : 

"Your Honor's goodness, and the despatch with 
which everything comes from you, will expose you 
to much trouble, and many applications, but as I 
know where your consolation lies, I do not hesitate 
to beg your assistance on this occasion." 

These axes doubtless did good service in felling 
the trees from which an improvised navy was 
built, and a year later, after the gallant resistance 
by this little navy under Arnold, at Lake Champlain, 
did equally good, or more efficient service, in felling 
the trees which reduced the speed of Burgoyne's 
advance to twenty miles in twenty days at a time 
when speed was his only salvation. Sailors are 
soon wanted for the improvised navy, and upon 
Schuyler's request Governor Trumbull commissions 
Captains Seth Warner, David Hawley and Frederick 
Chappell each to raise a company of seamen, at 
the same time asking Washington to allow some of 
these men to be taken from the Connecticut militia 
then in service in New York. The northern fleet 
on Lake Champlain is also further equipped with 
cannons and balls from the Salisbury furnace, whose 
operations Governor Trumbull and his Council are 
continually watching and directing. Sail cloth and 
cordage are also sent from Middletown under Gov- 
ernor Trumbull's supervision. 

Not only in supplying materials, but in the use 
of his influence and diplomatic tact, are the Gov- 
ernor's services called into request. One of the 
greatest and most insidious difficulties with which 



200 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

the chivalrous Schuyler had to contend was local 
jealousy. He occupied the unenviable position of 
a New York general commanding forces of which 
a large majority were from New England. They 
were suspicious of him, and were only too ready to 
believe any false reports regarding him which were 
spread abroad by his enemies and by the common 
enemy. The spirit of discord entered into the army, 
at first manifesting itself only by rumors and dis- 
sensions, but gradually gaining ground, as the 
schemer Gates appeared on the scene. On the 
thirteenth of July we find Schuyler writing to 
Governor Trumbull as follows : 

"Numerous and formidable as our enemies are, 
I cannot despair of success against them, provided 
we are unanimous. I mention this because of the 
unhappy dissensions in the Northern Army, where 
some unfriendly or unthinking people have set up 
Colonial distinctions. I have always deprecated 
every attempt to divide us, by that or any other 
means; and when I was last at Crown-Pomt, I 
convened the commanding officer of every corps, 
and pointed out, in the most forcible manner I was 
capable of, the danger of such distinctions, and how 
much and how justly the enemy would exult to learn 
it. The goodness of your heart, my dear sir, and 
your zeal for our cause, will induce you to give me 
all the assistance in your power to eradicate this 
evil. But whilst I entreat you to recommend to the 
troops from your colony to cultivate harmony, I 
would not wish to be understood that they have 
been the promoters or principal supporters of the 



3 



LETTER TO SCHUTLER 201 

unhappy dissensions; on the contrary, I have 
reason to believe them as Httle culpable as any." 

To this letter Governor Trumbull replies on the 
thirty-first of July, as follows : 

"It gives me great concern to hear that dissen- 
sions prevail in the Northern Army, and that they 
are inflamed and kept up by Colonial distinctions. 
I have, agreeable to your request, recommended 
to the troops from this Government to cultivate 
harmony and a good understanding with the troops 
from other States as well as among themselves, and 
have pressed it upon them with all the earnestness 
the nature and importance of the subject requires. 
I shall be very happy to find anything I have done, 
or can do, may contribute towards eradicating this 
evil." 

Notwithstanding the Governor's good offices in 
the matter, the trouble continued. Reports were 
circulated throughout New England reflecting seri- 
ously on Schuyler's loyalty to the cause of his coun- 
try, and causing him to write again to Governor 
Trumbull on the twentieth of August: 

"I am informed that forces that went from hence 
to Connecticut are doing all in their power to in- 
crease the jealousies that so unjustly prevail against 
me in different parts of the country. Conscious 
of the rectitude of my conduct, I should pass by in 
silent contempt every infamous traduction, did I 
not apprehend that silence would be construed as 
a tacit avowal of my guilt. I have therefore en- 
treated Congress for a minute inquiry into my 
conduct. ..." 



202 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

To this Governor Trumbull replies on the twenty- 
eighth of August : 

**Your assiduous attention to the great concerns 
of the publick at this important period is, in the 
minds of the considerate, a most undissembled 
declaration of your hearty attachment to the interest 
of the United States of America. Whatever reports 
may have been spread by the disaffected, or opin- 
ions had by the mistaken or ill-informed, I hope 
neither your character nor the cause of our country 
will eventually suffer thereby. As to Tories, no 
very good offices to one in your place can be ex- 
pected from them. I flatter myself that no misrep- 
resentations of theirs will have credit enough in 
this State greatly to wound your character or 
prevent your usefulness. It requires the wisdom 
of a Solomon and the patience of a Job to endure 
traduction, or regard a slander with the contempt 
it deserves. I heartily wish the injury may not 
give too much anxiety to a mind possessed of a 
conscious rectitude of intention." 

The Governor's son Jonathan had already warned 
Schuyler that the false reports of treason, embezzle- 
ment, etc., had reached Connecticut, where, as his 
correspondents inform Trumbull, these reports did 
not have "their designed effect." The veteran 
Putnam also writes that "the late reports were 
raised by people notoriously inimical to this country, 
and that it was done with a view of dividing us." 
He expresses the confidence of himself and his col- 
leagues in Schuyler's patriotism, zeal and honesty. 

Unfortunately, the official relations between Schuy- 



CONFLICT OF JUTHORITT 203 

ler and one of Governor Trumbull's sons — Joseph, 
the Commissary General of the Continental Army 
— were strained at this time to such an extent as 
to result in an open rupture between them. The 
other two sons, Jonathan and John, who were both 
in the northern army at this time, appear to have 
been on the best terms with Schuyler. The merits 
of the dispute between Commissary General Trum- 
bull and General Schuyler hardly concern us in 
this connection; but as the matter may be cited as 
a moving cause for Governor Trumbull to regard 
Schuyler unkindly, it is well to state the case briefly. 
Upon Schuyler's appointment to the command of 
the northern army, he was clothed with vague, but 
sweeping authority by Congress to provide every- 
thing necessary for the army. This authority 
might easily be construed to extend to the Com- 
missary Department. Walter Livingston was ap- 
pointed by Congress as a commissary in or for the 
,northern army. Upon his arrival in New York, 
Commissary General Trumbull found himself re- 
sponsible for furnishing the northern army as well 
as the army under Washington's command, and 
sent his deputy, Mr. Elisha Avery, to take charge 
of matters in the northern department for which 
Schuyler was furnishing money to his commissary, 
Livingston. Schuyler refused to recognize Avery in 
the matter, even after Washington had informed 
Schuyler that Congress had decided that the sole 
right of furnishing the northern army should rest 
with the Com.missary General. Gates is said to 
have cajoled Avery, and doubtless espoused his side 



204 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

of the quarrel, though he managed to conceal his 
cloven foot in the matter more successfully than 
in some of his later intrigues. At all events, the 
correspondence between General Gates and Com- 
missary General Trumbull grows active at this 
time, and some intercepted letters form the basis 
of an investigation which Schuyler demands of 
Congress. They form, too, the only product of 
Commissary Trumbull's pen, which we may regard 
with regret in his sad, short and arduous career. 

The conflict of authority between Commissary 
General Trumbull and General Schuyler lasted with 
apparent bitterness for two months, at the end of 
which time Deputy Commissary Avery was with- 
drawn from the northern army by the Commissary 
General, who reports to Congress requesting to be 
relieved from further connection with the northern 
army, as General Schuyler had not only refused to 
furnish money to Avery at a time when he was 
officially authorized to receive it, but had forbidden 
him to purchase provisions, and had given him 
orders conflicting with those of the Commissary 
General, to whom alone he was accountable. Upon 
this, Commissary Livingston resigns, and Congress 
sustains the action of the Commissary General. 

It has been asserted that all the Trumbulls had an 
"intense dislike and jealousy of Schuyler and the 
New York influence generally." ^ The official quarrel 
between one of the Trumbulls — Joseph — which 
is indicated above, appears to be the only ground 

1 Year book Connecticut Society Sons of the American Revolution. 1895 — 
1896, p. 185. 



SECTIONAL JEALOUSIES 205 

for such a statement. Schuyler's relations with two 
brothers of Joseph Trumbull appear to have been 
of the most amicable kind, so much so that he had 
been warned by one of these brothers against the 
false reports which had been circulated regarding 
him, and that he had recommended the other 
brother for promotion. So far as Governor Trum- 
bull is concerned, there is still to be found an iota 
of proof of his "intense dislike and jealousy of 
Schuyler." In the quarrel just referred to, it is 
natural that he might side with his son, who appears 
to have been in the right, and unfortunately carried 
his enmity too far. There is but one slight indica- 
tion, in a letter to his son-in-law, William Williams, 
that Governor Trumbull had a poor opinion of 
Schuyler's generalship. In this letter he says: 
"It is justly to be expected that General Gates 
is discontented with his situation, finding himself 
limited and removed from the command, to be a 
wretched spectator of the ruin of the army, without 
the power of attempting to save them." This of 
course was long after the trouble between his son and 
Schuyler and was written when the fall of Ticonderoga 
had cast a gloom over all New England ; and when loud 
complaints were made of St. Clair's movements by 
people ignorant of the military situation. 

It seems evident that Schuyler had the utmost 
regard for Governor Trumbull, writing as he did, 
on the fifteenth of September: "Your attentions, 
sir, to supply the army merits the warmest acknowl- 
edgments of every friend of his country. You have 
mine most unfeignedly." 



2o6 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

And through the whole course of official corre- 
spondence in this campaign, mutual sentiments of 
personal regard and esteem are exchanged in a way 
which would leave either or both of these patriots 
open to the charge of hypocrisy if they had not a 
high opinion of each other. Certain it is that they 
worked in the utmost harmony for the common 
cause, and that they both strove with unswerving 
fidelity to do everything in their power to remove 
the disastrous effects of sectional jealousy from 
which Schuyler so unjustly suffered. 

Their official relations continued to be active 
through the entire period of Schuyler's command, 
involving conflicts of opinion regarding the delicate 
subject of Connecticut's embargo and its effect on 
New York. This matter of conflicting interests 
between two newly born States was discussed most 
temperately and courteously by Schuyler and Trum- 
bull, and everything in the power of the latter that 
could be done to reconcile differences of opinion was 
done. There is hardly to be found a more striking 
instance of Trumbull's broad spirit of harmony in 
the common cause than in his relations with Schuyler. 
If he cherished that "intense dislike and jealousy" 
of which he had been suspected, his course is all 
the more to his credit for preventing his personal 
feelings from injuring the common cause. And if, 
as seems to be the case, he appreciated the ad- 
mirable character of Schuyler at its true worth, 
he must be credited with a soundness and keen- 
ness of judgment which few, if any, New England 
men exhibited in the case at the time. 



CHAPTER XIX 

*'tHE times that tried men's souls" ^ — DIFFI- 
CULTIES IN FILLING Connecticut's quota — tryon's 

RAID ON DANBURY TRUMBULL AND THE CONWAY 

CABAL THE TITLE "hIS EXCELLENCY" DISTASTE- 
FUL TO THE GOVERNOR 

THE gloom cast upon the nation by the 
success of the British in occupying New 
York, and by the retreat of Washington 
through New Jersey with his dwindhng army, 
was in a measure reheved by his wonderful gen- 
eralship in the battles of Trenton and Princeton. 
Had these master strokes been fully appreciated 
in New England, a far more hopeful view of the 
situation would have prevailed in that important 
section, and the recruits so sorely needed doubtless 
would have poured in to relieve the sad lack of men 
which prevented Washington from following up his 
advantages. In view of subsequent revelations, 
it is almost ludicrous to read even Governor Trum- 
bull's condolences to Washington on the capture 
of the traitor, General Charles Lee. Such condo- 
lences reflect the general view of this affair at the 
time, and show that it was regarded as a calamity 
which did much to offset the cheering news of 
Trenton and Princeton. 

But four days before the battle of Trenton, 
Washington had written an urgent letter to Trum- 

207 



2o8 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

bull, informing him that Lee's men, who should 
have been on the scene weeks before, had not re- 
enlisted, as Washington had **been taught to be- 
lieve", ^i^d that the militia of New Jersey afforded 
no aid. "It is easier," he writes, "to conceive 
than describe the situation I am in, — left, or shall 
be in a very few days, with only a few Southern 
regiments (reduced almost to nothing) to oppose 
Howe's main army, already posted in such a manner 
as to throw in his whole force upon us so soon as the 
frost affords him a passage over the Delaware, and 
our numbers such as to give no effectual opposition." 
Under these circumstances, he asks that two regi- 
ments of Connecticut militia which had been ordered 
home should be sent back at once. 

In the northern army, too, affairs were in a condi- 
tion far from satisfactory. Men and cannon were 
much needed, and the old jealousy of New England 
men, with its disastrous results, continued as before 
to render Schuyler's position difficult in the extreme. 
We find Gates at this time absenting himself from 
the battle of Trenton for the purpose of carrying 
on his intrigues in Congress whereby he finally 
succeeded in supplanting Schuyler, and reaping 
credit for military successes which were due entirely 
to others. 

The drain of the previous two years on the Con- 
necticut treasury had now grown to be a serious 
matter, so much so that one great difficulty in 
enlisting men to fill the continental quota lay in lack 
of funds to pay bounties. Another serious difficulty, 
too, was the lack of arms and ammunition. Added 



DIFFICULT TIMES 209 

to all these obstacles was an undefined but un- 
mistakable feeling of discouragement and weariness 
on the part of the people, which could not be ignored 
even in Connecticut. These were, as Tom Paine 
well said, "the times that tried men's souls." But 
the soul of Connecticut's Governor was equal to 
the occasion. With every fresh difficulty he re- 
doubled his exertions, in the midst of increasing 
cares, burdens and anxieties. The treatment of 
prisoners by the British becomes a source of serious 
concern to him, and a subject of much correspon- 
dence between himself and Washington. The main 
difficulty in Connecticut, as in all the other States, 
was the impossibility of filling the quotas under the 
new establishment of the Continental Army. Three 
years or the war was a term of enlistment difficult 
to accomplish among a people whose sole means of 
livelihood was in the home life on the farm. 

By March 6, 1777, the situation had become so 
serious that Washington writes for two regiments 
to be sent at once to Peekskill to reinforce the army 
while waiting for the various States to fill their 
quotas. These two regiments were at once drafted 
from ten of the regiments of militia; but a month 
later Washington writes that only eight hundred 
of the men had reached Peekskill. At the time 
when he called for them he wrote urging that men 
be sent forward for the regular army as fast as 
enlisted, as the army then consisted of only about 
five hundred Virginians and parts of two or three 
regiments — "all very weak." He adds: "I almost 
tax myself with imprudence in committing the 



2IO JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

secret to paper; not that I distrust you, of whose 
inviolable attachment I have had so many proofs, 
but for fear this letter should by any accident fall 
into other hands, than those for which it is intended.'* 

Later, while still urging for men to complete 
Connecticut's quota, and prevent the enemy from 
going up the Hudson, he writes: 

"I mark with peculiar satisfaction and thanks your 
constant and unwearied assiduity in giving the 
service every aid in your power." 

Washington and Trumbull were in full accord as 
to the need of long enlistments, and everything that 
could be done at this time was done towards filling 
Connecticut's quota. 

About this time occurred the first invasion of 
Connecticut soil by the British under Tryon. Land- 
ing on April 25, 1777, his forces proceeded to Dan- 
bury where, on the following night, they destroyed 
large quantities of military stores which had been 
deposited in that town by order of the General 
Assembly. The invaders, to the number of two 
thousand or more, met with a much warmer re- 
ception than they expected on their return march 
to their ships, and barely escaped capture, after a 
severe fight at Ridgefield and harassing attacks by 
the fast gathering militia under Wooster, Arnold 
and Silliman, in which Wooster lost his life. 

Tryon's invasion was reported by Trumbull to 
Washington on the fourth of May, and a request 
was made for two battalions of Continentals to 
be stationed in Connecticut, as the Continental 
Congress had provided, or allowed. Washington 



RAID ON DAN BURT 211 

found himself obliged to reply that he could not 
scatter his forces in such a way, as the entire New 
England coast had the same right to protection, 
which it was impossible to grant. He explains the 
situation fully to Trumbull, who readily acquiesces, 
though the people were clamorous for such pro- 
tection, and much interrupted in their important 
work of farming, so necessary to furnish supplies 
for their homes and for the army. 

Within a month from the time of Tryon's Dan- 
bury rai-d. Colonel Return Jonathan Meigs made 
his famous whaleboat raid on Sag Harbor, then a 
British depository of military stores, and accom- 
plished in twenty-five hours, with one hundred and 
sixty men and without the loss of a man, very 
nearly the same result in the destruction of military 
stores which Tryon with two thousand men took 
three days to accomplish at Danbury, and with a 
heavy loss and narrow escape. 

Washington's belief that in view of these results 
the enemy would be more cautious in future was 
fully confirmed, and for more than two years Con- 
necticut soil was free from British invasion. 

Discouraging news soon followed from the northern 
army. The evacuation of Fort Ticonderoga brought 
about a distrust of the commanding officers which 
made enlistments more difficult than ever in Con- 
necticut, thus adding to the difficulties which the 
Governor was constantly obliged to face and fight. 
Not one whit does the gloom which the news from 
the north cast over the country abate the Gov- 
ernor's zeal or his faith. "The Lord reigns!" he 



212 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

writes Washington — "Let us rejoice with thank- 
fulness beforehand for the mercies we have received, 
and with hope of those we stand in need of." 

And so, through the dark months which followed, 
he continues to urge enlistments and to take every 
means to help the common cause, until at last affairs 
in the north take on a brighter look, through the 
battles of Oriskany and Bennington; and the tide 
of the campaign in this department turns, until 
two months later it culminates in the surrender of 
Burgoyne. The air of the northern department is 
now full of victory, the credit of which does not 
go where it is deserved. Gates, by means of in- 
triguing, had superseded Schuyler, and reaped the 
laurels which he never earned. 

In the more southern campaign affairs wore a 
different aspect. Washington, with an army whose 
weakness he dares not disclose, is here facing an 
enemy far superior in numbers and discipline, per- 
plexed by their vacillating movements, so contrary 
to sound military principles. The battles of Brandy- 
wine and Germantown follow, and though bravely 
contested under the utmost disadvantages, do not 
result as everyone in New England is now expecting 
battles to result, with the defeat of Burgoyne already 
almost assured. The occupation of Philadelphia by 
the enemy is also regarded as a dire disaster by the 
large majority of people, who could not see the 
sense as well as the humor of Benjamin Franklin's 
remark, when on being told that the British had 
taken Philadelphia, he drily responded that Phila- 
delphia had taken the British. 



THE CONWAT CABAL 213 

The result of the good fortune of one general and 
the ill fortune of his commander made the times 
ripe for the miserable intrigue which bears the name 
of the Conway cabal. It would be unnecessary to 
mention this affair, were it not for the fact that 
statements have appeared in print which connect 
Governor Trumbull with the plots to remove Wash- 
ington from the command of the army at this 
time.^ The most careful search possible for the 
authority on which such statements rest has been 
made, without finding a trace of any word of Gov- 
ernor Trumbull's, either in print or in manuscript, 
which would tend to such a conclusion. 

It is believed by some historians that the move- 
ment known as the Conway cabal had a wider 
scope than it has been generally supposed to have 
had. Some of the best and greatest statesmen of 
the time, actuated by true patriotism and love of 
country, thought of the possibility of a successor 
for Washington at the time of his appointment 
to the command of the army, in case of his rem.oval 
by death or capture, or his inability by reason of 
sickness or any of the chances of war. How far 
this possibility was provided for in the councils 
of such statesmen, we have yet to learn. But it 
seems obvious to historians who are well qualified 
to judge that the intriguers of the Conway cabal 
used this perfectly legitimate view of certain states- 
men as the key for their miserable plot when they 

^ p. L. Ford. Atlantic Monthly, 75: 633; "The True George Washington", 
p. 256. L. C. Hatch. "The Administration of the American Revolutionary 
Army", p. 25. 



214 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

believed the time to be ripe for it. How far Trum- 
bull's counsels were sought and given even in the 
legitimate side of this movement it is impossible 
to learn. That he was in any way connected with 
the intriguing side of it seems too absurd to believe. 
Such an inference might, however, be drawn from 
some statements that have been made, even though 
it was not intended, in making them, that this view 
should be taken. 

At the time of the plot itself no one had better 
opportunities for taking an Impartial view of the 
case than Governor Trumbull. His correspondence 
with Washington at the time was constant, and of 
a nature to show him all the difficulties which the 
Commander in Chief had to encounter. At the 
same time, with Washington at headquarters we 
find Trumbull's son-in-law. General Jedediah Hunt- 
ington, from whose letter to Trumbull we will 
quote a few lines : 

November lo, 1777. "I do most heartily pity 
General Washington. It is impossible for him to 
operate with vigor; he bears his disappointments 
with the greatest equanimity, and Is anxious to do 
the best he can In the circumstances. I could give 
you Information that would astonish you." 

November 18. "Our army wastes fast; we can 
raise no recruits for money because it ceases to be 
of any consideration." 

December 14. "Congress, I dare say, think us 
paltroons for not engaging Mr. Howe the other day 
at White Marsh. The Committee of Congress who 
were there, I am told, were pleased to say as much. 



THE CONWAT CABAL 215 

An attack would undoubtedly have been the ruin 
of this army. General Washington is under strong 
necessity of hazarding an action for the sake of 
gratifying the opinions of those who ought not, and 
cannot indeed, judge him, that is, they cannot 
know the circumstances, or do not always under- 
stand the principles upon which the fate of battles 
depends. The country might in some measure be 
satisfied for our inactivity, if it would do to let 
them into the knowledge of our numbers. I wish 
the General was as strong in the field as he is in the 
newspapers. A little knowledge of military history 
will inform any one that an army in one campaign 
scarcely ever fought two battles so general as those 
of Brand3^wine and Germantown. They were not 
decisive, it is true, and for good reason beside those 
which have been given to the publick. Gen' Wash- 
ington had not more than about 10,000 at Brandy- 
wine, (the militia I don't count) nor has he more 
than that number of effectives after the junction 
of the Northern reinforcements (I hardly dare speak 
the truth). We have very authentick accounts of 
Howe's exceeding him in numbers, in discipline we 
know he does. . . . Never I believe did an army 
want to fight more than ours on our own or equal 
ground, and the inferior officers & soldiers would 
cheerfully have gone to their ground had they 
been ordered, confiding in the wisdom of their 
superiours." 

January 9, 1778. "I hope the situation of our 
military affairs will not be seen through any false 
mirrour. They (N. England) must not depend too 



2i6 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

much upon their sister States ; nor confine themselves 
to the Hues of proportion or equahty." 

So much for the information received by Gover- 
nor Trumbull from his son-in-law, General Hunting- 
ton. It is quoted merely as a specimen of this corre- 
spondence, and must have been allowed by such a 
man as Trumbull to carry the weight of information 
from an original and authoritative source. 

On the other hand the Governor's son Jonathan 
was, during all this time, in the northern army, 
petted by Gates, who appreciated the importance 
of the assistance of Connecticut. The letters of the 
younger Jonathan Trumbull to his father evidently 
bear the flavor of his surroundings in the military 
family of Gates, and reflect the opinions which were 
doubtless quite freely expressed in this family. A 
few specimens of these letters must suffice : 

Albany, December i, 1777. "Is it not astonish- 
ing that two months have now nearly passed at 
the southward since anything had been done? 
What can be the cause of their lingering inac- 
tivity.^ they have before this had large reinforce- 
ments from this army. If nothing is done with the 
whole united Continental force, will there not be 
reason for complaint.^ I fear all is not right. I 
wish they had the same harmony & unanimity as 
has prevailed in this quarter. . . . 

"We are told that the Adams's have followed Mr. 
H. home. Is the confederation compleated? A 
rope of sand cannot be strong." 

Albany, December 4, 1777. "Mr. Pierce re- 
turned from Congress two days since, with various 



THE CONWAT CABAL 217 

letters, the purport of which you will know when 
I can reach Lebanon. His news is rather very dis- 
agreeable, informg that Gen' Varnum had evacuated 
Red Bank Fort, without waitg the attack of Lord 
Cornwallis, who was on his march for that purpose, 
and while Gen* Green was on his way, with his 
division, to sustain the Fort. Reasons — none 
assigned." 

Going on to give particulars of other reports of 
military movements, he adds: 

"Other reports prevail, which I shall not men- 
tion. I fear things are bad eno' below, that the 
enemy will probably have safe & good winter quarters 
in the city, & leave our army to shurk for themselves 
where they can find covering." 

These extracts from letters from General Jedediah 
Huntington on one hand and Jonathan Trumbull, 
Junior, on the other, give as full an idea as possible 
of the information which these two correspondents 
of the Governor's thought it prudent to commit to 
paper. 

Between these two correspondents stands William 
Williams, then in Congress, apparently more con- 
cerned with interpreting any reverses of our army 
as a display of the wrath of the Almighty against a 
sinful people than in criticizing generalship; as 
after an elaborate description of the battle of Chad's 
Ford, he adds, writing from Congress : 

"It is an awful frown of Divine Providence, but 
we are not at all humbled under it; a sad sign that 
more dreadful evils await us." 

It cannot be denied that any connection of Trum- 



2i8 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

bull with the councils which considered a substitute 
for Washington in case of need, or with the plots 
which were formed for removing him from office 
would be difficult to discover from documentary- 
evidence after this lapse of one hundred and twenty- 
eight years. The most that can be said in the way 
of indicating his connection with the matter is that 
he had at the time a high opinion of Gates, as most 
New England men had, and that Gates did every- 
thing in his power to foster this opinion. But this 
is far from proving anything, and yet it is as far 
as we can go. And there seems to be no doubt that 
he had, after his year and more of active corre- 
spondence with Washington, the highest possible 
opinion of that great man. Some indications of 
Trumbull's regard for Washington may be gathered 
from the following extract from a letter which he 
wrote him on March 21, 1777: 

"I have been greatly alarmed with an account of 
your ill state of health, but had the pleasure yes- 
terday to hear you was mending. May God pre- 
serve your life and restore your health, for the sake 
of your country as well as your friends and your 
own, is the sincere wish of 

*'Sir, with highest esteem and regard, 

"Your obedient, humble servant, 

"Jon^h Trumbull." 

Again, on January 14, 1778, he writes to Washing- 
ton, speaking of his wish to fill Connecticut's quota, 
and adding: 

"Our inveterate foes will strain every nerve in 
the manner you mention, which should excite us 



THE CONWAT CABAL 219 

to be beforehand with them to strike a home blow 
before they can be reinforced. It is my most ardent 
desire that every necessary preparation be made. 
Such a stroke will best relieve the sufferings of the 
army. For them I have very tender feelings. At 
the same time, sir, I feel most cordially for the 
weight and burdens that lie on your Excellency." 

It seems useless to pursue this subject further. 
The whole situation seems adverse to any view which 
would connect Trumbull with the plot of Conway 
and Gates to supersede Washington. Trumbull's 
entire record shows that he busied himself with 
other and more practical affairs. Though he con- 
stantly watched the progress of military movements, 
he is rarely, if ever, to be found outside the limits 
of his stanch little State, where he constantly toiled 
and hoped and prayed for the success of the righteous 
cause to which he was committed, heart and soul. 
It should be remembered, too, that he was at this 
time a man of sixty-seven, with a large experience 
in judicial matters and a calm, impartial judgment of 
men and affairs. If any of the family were connected 
with the Conway cabal, it might have been his son 
Jonathan, who, with less mature judgment, was 
under the immediate influence of Gates and his 
military family, the same family which received 
Lafayette's toast to the Commander in Chief so 
coldly and awkwardly on a certain festive occasion. 
But we lack proof that young Trumbull }ielded 
to these influences. It should be remembered, too, 
that his position as Paymaster of the northern 
department was, at the time, of a character to give 



220 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

him but little, if any, influence in Congress, the 
only body whose acts were worth anything to the 
plotters. 

At the May session of the General Assembly of 
Connecticut in 1777, the title "His Excellency'* 
was adopted by vote, as "the stile, title or appella- 
tion of the Governor or Commander in Chief." 

This was distasteful to the Governor; and as it 
appears to be the only trace we can find of his own 
view of his personal distinction, it is important, 
in estimating his character, that we should study 
his own words on the subject, addressed to the 
General Assembly. A full year had elapsed since 
the enactment of that body had burdened him with 
this title, and it appears that it continued to dis- 
turb him to such an extent that he is moved to 
address them in the following words : 

"An act of this Assembly made and passed this 
time twelve months ordered the stile of His Ex- 
cellency to be given the Governor of this State. 
This savouring too much of High Titles, and not 
beneficial, may it not honorably be repealed.'' It 
passed without previous knowledge, expectation or 
desire. Asking pardon from you and from my 
successors, I do sincerely request its repeal. It 
is Honor and Happiness enough to meet the Ap- 
probation of Heaven, of my conscience, and of my 
Brethren." 

Mindful, perhaps, of the mischief made in the 
army particularly by jealousies caused by the ap- 
pointments of Congress, and by some appointments 
in the civil service, he adds: 



DISLIKE OF TITLES 221 

"High sounding Titles intoxicate the mind, in- 
generate envy, breed disorders in a commonwealth, 
and ought therefore to be avoided. The true gran- 
deur and solid glory do not consist in high Titles, 
splendour, pomp, and magnificence, nor in reverence 
and exterior honor paid to their Governors and 
Rulers, but in the real and solid advantages derived 
therefrom/' 

There were sticklers for rank, for position and 
empty honors, in the days of the Revolution, from 
John Hancock down, but Governor Trumbull was 
not one of them. 



CHAPTER XX 

TRUMBULL*S ILLNESS AND MESSAGE TO THE GENERAL 
ASSEMBLY TAXATION REGULATING ACTS CON- 
FEDERATION RELIEF FOR VALLEY FORGE CORRE- 
SPONDENCE WITH TRYON THE ERRAND OF THE 

"spy" DEATH OF JOSEPH TRUMBULL 

UP to the time of the adjourned session of 
the General Assembly in February, 1778, 
Governor Trumbull appears to have been 
present at every session during the nine years 
of his incumbency. His health had been remark- 
able for a man of his years and burdens; but 
in February we find him sending the following mes- 
sage to the General Assembly: 

"Gentlemen of the Council, and Gentlemen of the 
House of Representatives: 

"It having pleased Providence to detain me by 
indisposition from a personal attendance with you, 
I am to take this method of addressing you on the 
present important occasion. The papers relative 
to the business which will come under your atten- 
tion accompany this, — and any letters under ad- 
dress to me, which may be received in my absence, 
His Honor the Deputy Governor will open and 
communicate. 

"The Articles of Confederation of the United 
States call first for your attention, and as this 



MESSAGE TO THE ASSEMBLT 223 

business was well nigh completed during your late 
sessions, I hope it will be speedily finish'd. 

"The necessity of immediate large Taxation was 
next considered, and I trust will now occupy your 
serious attention. For my own part, I am more 
fully convinced that this is the only effectual and 
safe method of extricating ourselves from our 
present difficulties and of giving value to our cur- 
rency, and that this time is the most proper for 
adopting this remedy, is almost self-evident. Our 
debts must be paid, and all men will allow that it is 
more easy to pay a nominal sum, when money is 
plenty and cheaply earned, than when it is the 
scarcest, and consequently the dearest article. 

**The doings of the convention at New Haven, 
in the regulation of prices, &c., will likewise come 
before you, and will demand your very serious con- 
sideration. As it is a matter of particular concern 
to the whole body of the people, will it not be ad- 
visable to defer your determination therein, until 
it can be referr'd to and considered by them in 
their town meetings? At least, it is not, in my 
opinion, safe to attempt the regulation of those 
articles, which are immediately necessary for the 
support of the army. We may, it is true, avail 
ourselves of whatever is at present on hand — but 
meantime, if we affix a low price to provisions and 
articles of importation, we shall find that the farmer 
will cease to till the ground for more than is necessary 
for his own subsistence — and the merchant to 
risque his fortune on a small and precarious prospect 
of gain. These things I trust will be carefully 



224 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

attended to, and those measures adopted which will 
best promote the public good." 

In accordance with these recommendations, the 
Articles of Confederation were adopted at this 
session, and a tax of two shillings on the pound was 
laid, one half to be paid by the following June and 
the other half by the following November. This 
tax was to meet the payment of ^600,000 appor- 
tioned to Connecticut by Congress in a call on the 
thirteen States for ^5,000,000. 

In the matter of the regulation of prices, the 
General Assembly and the Governor could not 
agree. A measure was quite promptly passed at 
this session in accordance with the recommendation 
of Congress "for the regulation of prices of labour, 
produce, manufactures and commodities within this 
state", and was followed by an enactment that 
no person could "commence or maintain any suit 
either in law or equity within this state" until he 
should take solemn oath that he had not violated 
any provision of the act regulating prices. 

From Trumbull's later correspondence with Wash- 
ington, we learn that he was utterly opposed to the 
legislation, and that it caused him much concern. 
That he was right in his belief we may see from the 
fact that in the following May the regulating act 
was suspended, and in the following October re- 
pealed, no doubt in the light of rather bitter expe- 
rience which the Governor alone appears to have 
foreseen. 

It was during the Governor's illness that a letter 
from Washington under date of February sixth came 



AN ALARMING SITUATION 225 

to Hartford and was, no doubt, opened by Deputy- 
Governor Griswold, and by him communicated 
to the General Assembly, in accordance with Gov- 
ernor Trumbull's general instructions at the open- 
ing of the session. This letter informs the Governor 
that the army at Valley Forge must disband, "un- 
less more constant, regular and larger supplies of 
the meat kind are furnished than have been for 
some time past." Washington adds: 

"I must therefore, sir, entreat you in the most 
earnest terms, and by that zeal which has so em- 
inently distinguished your character in the present 
arduous struggle, to give every countenance to the 
person or persons employed in the purchasing line 
in your State, and to urge them to the most vig- 
ourous efforts to forward supplies of cattle from 
time to time; and thereby prevent such a melan- 
choly and alarming catastrophe. As I observed 
before, this subject is rather out of your province, 
yet I know your wishes to promote the service 
in every possible degree will render an apology 
unnecessary. ..." 

This alarming situation appears to have been 
provided for by the Governor and Council of Safety 
in the previous month of January by the appoint- 
ment of Colonel Henry Champion, "a gentleman 
of great judgment, capacity and experience in the 
business of procuring and purchasing fat cattle, 
especially beyond any other person in this State, 
and of most unexceptionable honor and integrity," ^ 
as purchaser of cattle, to be driven to such places 

^ Public Records of the State of Connecticut, i: 511, 512. 



226 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

*'as may be directed by the commissary general of 
issues or other proper authority." 

Colonel Champion's objections to serving under 
the rules of the then disorganized Commissary 
Department were overcome, and he entered at once 
into this important service, with the sum of ^200,000 
placed in his hands and in the hands of Peter Colt, 
Deputy Commissary General of purchases. A later 
vote of the Council of Safety provides an additional 
sum of ^200,000 for the same purpose. 

The first drove of cattle, to the number of three 
hundred, was driven by Colonel Champion and his 
son Epaphroditus to the starving army at Valley 
Forge, where in five days, according to the testi- 
mony of the younger Champion, they were devoured 
so eagerly that "you might have made a knife out 
of every bone." Colonel Champion and Commissary 
Jeremiah Wadsworth continued their efforts by re- 
quest and direction of Governor Trumbull and his 
Council of Safety; and it is hardly too much to say 
that the distressing condition of the army was more 
effectively relieved by Connecticut at this time 
than by any other one State. As late as the fifth of 
May Governor Trumbull writes to Washington: 

"The activities and abilities of Mr. Wadsworth 
and Champion will doubtless be exerted to the 
utmost, and I hope will not fail of success." 

Wadsworth was at this time Commissary General 
of the Continental Army. The utterly absurd 
course of Congress in reorganizing, or, more prop- 
erly, disorganizing the Commissary Department 
had, more than any other cause, led to the situation 



GOVERNOR TRTON 227 

at Valley Forge, as it had previously led to the 
resignation of Commissary General Joseph Trum- 
bull, who very properly declined to serve in a posi- 
tion where the control of the department was taken 
from him and the responsibilities only left. Having 
succeeded to an alarming extent in starving the 
army as the result of criminally foolish legislation, 
Congress, in April of this year, had practically 
reestablished the former organization of the Com- 
missary Department, and had persuaded Jeremiah 
Wadsworth to take charge of it. 

Joseph Trumbull was now at his home in Lebanon, 
suffering from a fatal illness brought on by the 
cares, anxieties and fatigues of his office. In this 
same month of April an interesting correspondence 
began between Governor William Tryon and Gov- 
ernor Trumbull. Tryon had at this time received 
from Lord George Germaine the draft of two bills 
which had been read in Parliament on the nine- 
teenth of the previous February, with "his Maj- 
esty's command that they be printed and dispersed" 
throughout the American colonies. One of these 
bills was for the abolition of internal taxation in 
the American colonies by the government of Great 
Britain, and the other "to enable his Majesty 
to appoint Commissioners with sufficient Powers 
to treat, consult and agree upon the means of quiet- 
ing the Disorders now subsisting in certain of the 
Colonies, Plantations and Provinces of North Amer- 
ica." It can only be remarked in passing that 
the year 1778 was not as favorable for such nego- 
tiations as the year 1775 would have been. 



228 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

On April 17, 1778, Tryon writes to Governor 
Trumbull as follows: 

*' Sir, — Having been honored with the King's 
commands to circulate the enclosures to the people 
at large, I take the liberty to offer them to you for 
your candid consideration, and to recommend that 
through your means the inhabitants within your 
Province may be acquainted with the same, as 
also the other Provinces to the eastward. 

"I am, Sir, your obedient servant, 

"W™ Tryon." 

The reception which this communication met at 
the hands of the Governor can best be shown by 
quoting his reply in full : 

"Lebanon, 23^^ April, 1778. 

"Sir, — Your letter of the 17th instant from New 
York is received with its enclosures, and the several 
similar packets of various addresses with which it 
was accompanied. 

"Propositions of peace are usually made from 
the supreme authority of one contending power to 
the similar authority of the other; and the present 
is the first instance within my recollections where 
a vague, half blank, and very indefinite draft of a 
bill once only read before one of three bodies of the 
legislature of a nation has ever been addressed to the 
people at large of an opposite power, as an overture 
of reconciliation. There was a day when even this 
step from our then acknowledged parent state might 
have been accepted with joy and gratitude. But 
that day. Sir, is passed irrevocably. The repeated 
insolent rejection of our sincere and sufficiently 



LETTER TO TRTON 229 

humble petitions, the unprovoked commencement 
of hostihties, the barbarous inhumanity which has 
marked the prosecution of the war on your part 
in its several stages, the insolence which displays 
itself on every petty advantage, the cruelty which 
has been exhausted on those unhappy men whom 
the fortune of war has thrown into your hands, — 
all these are insuperable and eternal bars to the 
very idea of concluding a peace with Great Britain 
on any other conditions than the most absolute and 
perfect independency. 

"To the Congress of the United States of America, 
therefore, all proposals of this kind are to be ad- 
dressed. And you must give me leave. Sir, to say 
that the present mode bears too much the marks 
of an insidious design to disunite the people, and 
to lull us into a state of quietude and negligence of 
the necessary preparations for the approaching 
campaign. 

'*If this be its real design it is fruitless. If peace 
be really the object let your proposals be addressed 
properly to the proper power, and your negotia- 
tions honorably conducted, and we shall then 
have some prospect of (what is the most ardent 
wish of every honest American) a lasting and honor- 
able peace. The British nation may then, perhaps, 
find us as affectionate and valuable friends as we 
are now determined and fatal enemies, and derive 
from that friendship more solid and real advantage 
than the most sanguine can expect from conquest.'* 
"I am, Sir, your obedient servant, 

"Jon**^ Trumbull." 



230 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

The correspondence was renewed six months 
later by the transmission by Tryon to Trumbull 
of "several printed copies of the King's Commis- 
sioners' Manifesto and Proclamation." These docu- 
ments appear to have been sent to the Congress of 
the United States, which course Trumbull commends 
as the proper one in his reply to Tryon, though he 
deprecates the motive which seems to underlie 
the "proclamation and manifesto." At this time, 
the bills abolishing internal taxes and appointing 
commissioners to treat with the colonists had 
passed by vote of Parliament. It was a vote to 
give up, practically, everything for which Great 
Britain had been contending; and, in view of the 
French alliance which had been completed, the 
action of the Mother Country was very much like 
locking the stable door after the horse had been 
stolen. 

At the time of Trumbull's reply to Tryon's first 
communication, news of the passage of these bills 
had not reached America. Usually such important 
matters as this letter of the Governor's were sub- 
mitted to the General Assembly for its approval, 
but this body was not in session at the time, and 
the records of the Council of Safety make no men- 
tion of the affair. Later the Connecticut delegates 
to the Continental Congress informed the Governor 
that his "late correspondence with General Tryon 
meets with universal approval." General Gates, 
to whom a copy of this correspondence was sent, 
failed to mention it in his frequent letters to the 
Governor. Gates joined with the traitor, Charles 



AN IMPORTANT DUTY 231 

Lee, in favoring negotiations with the British com- 
missioners.^ 

One of the most important duties assigned to the 
Governor in this year was the sending to our 
ambassadors to France a copy of the treaty of 
alHance ratified by the Continental Congress. The 
letter transmitting this document to the Governor 
reads thus: 

*'Your Excellency having been requested by the 
Marine Committee to have a packet boat in readi- 
ness to carry important dispatches to France, 
we have now sent such to your care, conditionally, 
which we desire you to give in charge to a trusty 
Captain, to deliver with his own hands to our Com- 
missioners at Paris. Your wisdom will dictate 
pointed orders for conveying the packets without 
injury, w*^ secresy & with dispatch; but, for sink- 
ing them in case the vessel should be unfortunately 
taken. 

"We are respectfully 

"Your Exceller^y's humble servants, 

" Richard Henry Lee, 
"James Lovell. 

"York Town, May 19th, 1778 

"Governour Trumbull" 

In compliance with this request, the little schooner 
Spy, of fifty tons' burden, under command of Cap- 
tain Robert Niles, was selected for this important 
service. Of the six vessels separately despatched 
for this purpose, the Spy was the only one which 

^ Lecky. "England in the i8th Century." Vol. 4, p. 85. 



232 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

escaped capture. She was a fleet little schooner, 
under an able and trustworthy captain, and it 
is to be supposed that the wisdom of the Governor 
and Council in making the selection lay partly in 
the fact that it would seem impossible to the enemy 
that so small a craft would cross the Atlantic as 
an American war vessel. The passage from Stoning- 
ton to Brest was made in twenty-one days, and 
Captain Niles had the honor of delivering into the 
hands of Benjamin Franklin at Paris his mail con- 
taining this precious document, "being", as the 
records of the Council of Safety state, "the first 
account he had received of that event, which was 
greatly satisfactory to him and the French ministry 
and nation in general", etc. 

On July 23, 1778, the Governor suffered a sad 
bereavement in the death of his eldest son, Joseph, 
whose career as a young merchant and later as 
Commissary General has been outlined in several 
previous chapters. Informing Washington of his 
loss, the Governor writes, on the twenty-fifth of July: 

"I very sincerely thank your Excellency for your 
friendly and affectionate good will and wishes towards 
my late dear son, whom it pleased the sovereign 
Arbiter of life and death to remove from this world 
about sunrising of the 23^^ instant. 

"This is a heavy and sore breach upon me; but 
it is my duty to be still and know that God has 
done it, who has a right to dispose of all His crea- 
tures as He pleaseth, and ever exercises that right 
in perfect consistence with holiness, justice and 
goodness." 



DEATH OF JOSEPH TRUMBULL 233 

To this Intelligence Washington replies on the 
twenty-eighth : 

"I sincerely condole with you on the death of 
your worthy son, Colonel Joseph Trumbull, whose 
exertions in the cause of his country, while he con- 
tinued in a public character, will reflect honor upon 
his memory; and for whom, when living, I enter- 
tained a most cordial regard." 

Joseph Trumbull had been married a little more 
than a year to Amelia, daughter of Eliphalet Dyer. 
He left no children. The settlement of his estate 
was a most complicated undertaking, and devolved 
mainly upon his father and his brother Jonathan. 
Unsettled accounts with the Continental Congress 
formed, of course, the chief difficulty. On the 
sixth of October, the Governor writes to his good 
friend Henry Laurens, President of the Continental 
Congress, presenting a memorial to Congress re- 
garding the unsettled claims of his son Joseph. 
One paragraph in this letter is so characteristic that 
it must be quoted: 

"I am little apt, and always unwilling to speak 
advantageously of myself or my children; but as 
after all some justice is due to one's self and to 
them, as well as to others, I beg leave to represent 
that the attachment of myself, of this son of mine, 
and my whole family, to the American cause and 
independency was always unshaken, our endeavors 
to promote the same unwearied. That his prin- 
ciples were honest and honorable, his doings in his 
department to the satisfaction of the General, of 
the officers, and of the army. That he had, and his 



234 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

relict and heirs have, a common claim to a just and 
reasonable reward for his services." 

President Laurens' reply, speaking of the delayed 
action of Congress regarding this claim, says : 

"The best influence on that occasion was to assure 
my friends who were unacquainted with the merits 
of the late Mr. Joseph Trumbull, that he had been 
one of the best servants of Congress, that I was 
persuaded had he been continued in the office of 
Commissary upon his own terms the public would 
have saved five millions of dollars or more, and 
many hundreds of soldiers. To prove this to the 
satisfaction of every reasonable person will not 
be difficult to me. It requires only a retrospect to 
the circumstances of our army at Valley Forge 
during the last winter, and to the amazing advance 
of every species of provision immediately after the 
stores which he had amassed were consumed." 

After much correspondence, and as the result 
of a long sojourn in Philadelphia by the Governor's 
son Jonathan, who acted as the administrator of 
his brother Joseph's estate, the accounts of the late 
Commissary General were finally settled by Con- 
gress by an allowance of one half per cent, on all 
money received, and two and one half per cent, 
on all money expended in purchases. These al- 
lowances were accompanied by resolutions of Con- 
gress highly commending the services of the late 
Commissary General. 



CHAPTER XXI 

THE WYOMING MASSACRE BATTLE OF RHODE ISLAND 

FAILURE THE GOVERNOR'S COMMENTS HIS 

SON A VOLUNTEER GENERAL GATES ENTERTAINED 

AT HARTFORD NAVAL SUCCESSES BUSHNELL's 

TORPEDO FINANCES CONFEDERATION URGED BY 

TRUMBULL 

ADDED to the sorrows and anxieties of this 
sad summer, the news of the terrible 
Wyoming massacre reached the Governor 
at about the time of his son's death. We 
have seen his interest in Connecticut's right to 
the territory where this tragedy occurred in the 
able statement which he made of the Susquehanna 
case, so called. At this time — July, 1778 — the 
Wyoming valley was Connecticut soil both by 
charter rights and legislative enactment; for it 
lay in the County of Westmoreland, having pre- 
viously been a part of Litchfield County, and sent its 
deputies to the General Assembly of Connecticut. 
Although the State with this far-off addition was a 
geographical absurdity, the claim was in force, and 
the population was largely composed of people from 
the Connecticut of New England who had settled 
in the beautiful valley under the auspices of the 
Susquehanna Company. 

The horrors of this massacre are too well known 
to every reader of American history to need recital 

23 s 



236 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

here. All the vindictiveness of evicted Tories was 
added to the savage instincts of their Indian allies, 
aroused to the full by the victory of an overwhelm- 
ing force over a little band of brave defenders of their 
homes. The only safety for the survivors lay in 
flight through a strange and sometimes trackless 
country. Of these survivors but few men were left; 
and women, children and aged men made up the 
bulk of this crowd of hapless refugees. They reached 
their old Connecticut homes after untold sufferings 
and hardships. Their story was told to Governor 
Trumbull by "Messrs Jenkins, Gallup and Harding, 
persons of integrity who removed from the eastern 
part of this State, and settled at said Westmoreland, 
and had the good fortune to escape the carnage." ^ 

As a result of the Governor's request to Congress 
and his correspondence with Washington, three 
regiments, with a part of Morgan's rifle corps, were 
sent to Wyoming. These forces were, as Washing- 
ton writes, "of considerable service", enabling the 
Connecticut settlers to return to their former homes 
and secure crops which had escaped destruction. 

The Cherry Valley massacre, which occurred in 
the following November, made it necessary that 
more active measures should be taken to prevent 
such barbarous raids as were made at Wyoming 
and Cherry Valley. Sullivan's Indian campaign was 
organized and undertaken in the following July. 
This plan was contemplated soon after the Wyoming 
horror, but the military situation was such at that 
time that it was necessary to wait before taking 

* Letter of Governor Trumbull to General Washington, August 27, 1778. 



MILITART MEASURES 237 

this measure, the results of which the Governor 
had the satisfaction of learning. With true Con- 
necticut grit and perseverance the Wyoming settlers 
now returned, and renewed their industries in that 
beautiful valley in comparative security. In 1782, 
by decree of a council appointed by Congress, 
Connecticut was deprived of all jurisdiction in this 
section where for so many years her sons had settled, 
so that their claims for indemnity for their losses 
in war could not be recognized by the State govern- 
ment under which they had settled, or by the State 
of Pennsylvania to which later jurisdiction was 
given. 

In the midst of the grief and anxieties occasioned 
by the illness and death of his son, and by the 
Wyoming massacre, an important military move- 
ment almost at the doors of Connecticut called for 
the most arduous and prompt measures on the part 
of the Governor and his Council. This was the 
attempt, with the aid of the French fleet under 
Admiral D'Estaing, to dislodge the enemy from their 
stronghold at Newport and to drive them out of 
Rhode Island, the only place on New England soil 
where they still retained a foothold. In July letters 
came pouring in upon the Governor from Washing- 
ton and from President Laurens, urging every 
possible attention on the part of Connecticut to 
the wants of the French fleet, and reinforce- 
ments for General Sullivan in command at Rhode 
Island; from Governor Greene, to the same efi^ect; 
and from Sullivan, expecting an attack on Provi- 
dence and calling most earnestly for men from Con- 



238 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

nectlcut. In response to these requests, seven com- 
panies of infantry and one matross company were 
immediately sent, notwithstanding the heavy drains 
made upon the State for keeping up its quota in 
the main army. Fifty barrels of beef and one 
hundred barrels of pork were also forwarded from 
Connecticut's commissary's stores at Boston by 
direction of the Governor to meet an emergency 
call from General Sullivan; and during this short 
campaign two hundred barrels of powder were 
sent, at Governor Greene's request, to replace 
ammunition destroyed by the severe and unpre- 
cedented rainstorm of August. Water boats were 
fitted out at New London by Washington's request 
to supply the French fleet, and pilots were in readi- 
ness to meet this fleet on its arrival. 

In July, everything appeared auspicious, and 
Connecticut patriots were already rejoicing in im- 
agination at the prospect of a signal victory. Proc- 
lamations of a hopeful and encouraging tone, 
calling for volunteers in addition to the quota, 
were issued by the Governor. The French alliance 
was regarded as an "interposition of Providence", 
the first fruits of which were to be gathered near 
a town of that name in Rhode Island. But this 
was not to be. A tremendous storm arose at the 
time when the French fleet was maneuvering to 
engage the British fleet, and scattered the ships, 
dismasting some of them. On returning to New- 
port, Admiral D'Estaing, in spite of earnest protests 
from Sullivan and others, insisted on sailing for 
Boston to refit, and the American forces, largely 



BATTLE OF RHODE ISLAND 239 

outnumbered, were left without their expected naval 
support, and obliged to retire. On this subject 
Governor Trumbull writes Washington, on the 
twenty-seventh of August : 

"Thus are our raised expectations from an ex- 
pedition, which had all the appearance of success, 
damped. This shows us that we ought not to 
place our dependence too much on foreign aid ; — 
but may such disappointment teach us to place 
our trust and confidence in that Supreme Being 
who governs the universe, and can, with infinite 
ease, turn those things which we are ready to con- 
clude are against us, eventually to our advantage, 
in whose allwise disposals may we cheerfully ac- 
quiesce, and rest satisfied that whatever He doth is 
right." 

The anxiety of the Governor regarding this short 
campaign was greatly heightened by the fact that 
his youngest son, John, had volunteered as an aide 
to General Sullivan, and was in the thick of the 
fight of the twenty-ninth of August, being obliged 
to carry Sullivan's orders from one division to 
another at great personal risk from the showers of 
musket balls, grapeshot, and round shot through 
which he passed on horseback, in performance of his 
duties. He fortunately escaped injury, and says 
in his reminiscences: 

"It becomes me to say with the Psalmist, *I 
thank thee, O thou Most High, for thou hast covered 
my head in the day of battle.' For never was aide 
de camp exposed to more danger than I was during 
that entire day, from daylight to dusk." 



240 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

His son's participation in this battle formed a 
new bond of sympathy between the Governor and 
President Laurens, for on the fifth of the following 
October we find the former writing to the latter: 

"With great sincerity and satisfaction I beg leave 
to congratulate your Excellency on the happy 
escape from danger of your son in the late attempt 
on Rhode Island, and on the honor he has very 
justly obtained from the share he bore in the events 
of that expedition, particularly in the memorable 
battle fought on that island. 

"With much gratitude to the disposer of events 
I also acknowledge the safety of my youngest son, 
who voluntarily, and without my approbation, 
shared the like dangers In the same expedition." 

To this President Laurens replies on November lo: 

"I perceive, Sir, we were in equal danger on the 
28 August, and that we have each of us particular 
cause for thankfulness for the escape of our children 
from dangers to which their love of country had 
exposed them. My own inform me what were your 
feelings while the event of the day remained un- 
known to us, and I am persuaded that we have 
both learned in all cases, under the severest pangs 
arising from apprehensions, such as I confess I felt, 
on that occasion, and in deep distress from real 
misfortunes, to say, — 'Thy will be done.'" 

The brilliant military career of President Laurens' 
son John here referred to lasted throughout the war, 
and was brought to a sad end, in a little skirmish in 
1782, in which he fell, mortally wounded, at the 
head of his troops. 



NAVAL SUCCESSES 241 

The equally distinguished and more varied career 
of Colonel John Trumbull was destined to last 
more than half a century beyond the career of the 
brave Colonel John Laurens. 

It was during the month of October in this year 
that General Gates, with his staff, was much more 
royally entertained at Hartford than he deserved 
to be. He stood high in popular favor at this time, 
since the magnanimous Washington had kept his 
share in the Conway cabal as profound a secret as 
possible, and the bubble of his military reputation 
was yet to burst by means of his blundering cam- 
paign in the South. The sum of £500 was appro- 
priated by the General Assembly for the reception 
given to him at Hartford, thirteen toasts were 
drunk, among them one to "General Washington 
and the American Army", in which it is hoped he 
responded more warmly than to a similar toast 
proposed by Lafayette on a previous occasion. 
Another of these toasts was "The American Navy", 
which touched Connecticut quite closely at this 
time in view of the recent capture of the British 
warships Admiral Keppel and Cyrus ^ by the Con- 
necticut warships Oliver Cromwell and Defence. 
These were valuable prizes, as the following extract 
from a letter of Samuel Eliot, Junior, Connecticut's 
agent at Boston, goes to show: 

"It is with great pleasure that I am able to inform 
your Excellency, that the Kepple and Cyrus prizes 
turn out so well as not only to pay the moneys 

1 The name of this vessel is given in unofficial papers as the Cygnus. New 
London Company Hist. Soc. Records and papers, vol. i, pt. 4, p. 38. 



242 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

advanc'd for the Defence and Cromwell, but that 
I shall be able to remit a very large sum to the 
State." 

This sum was expected to reach at least £5,000. 
These were said to be the most important prizes 
captured by Connecticut vessels during the war. 
During the previous year the aggregate of prize 
money was larger, and the losses of American vessels 
fewer, the value of prizes for that year being esti- 
mated at £200,000. As a matter of fact, the naval 
service of the State in the Revolution has never 
received from historians the notice which it de- 
served. It is safe to say that during the war no 
fewer than two hundred and fifty armed vessels 
of various kinds and classes were fitted out in this 
little State for naval service; and the position of the 
Governor as commander in chief of the naval as 
well as the military forces of Connecticut added 
largely to his burdens and responsibilities. The 
British soon learned that such a thing as an American 
war vessel was neither an impossibility nor a farce, 
and the moral effect of Connecticut's motley fleet 
was a much more important factor than it is gener- 
ally supposed to be. This moral effect, too, was 
much enhanced by the invention made by David 
Bushnell of Saybrook. This is said to have been 
the first marine torpedo known to history. The 
Governor was much interested in this invention 
which, though it did not actually do much damage, 
gave to the British that sense of the unknown risks 
which might be encountered at anchor which was 
extremely annoying, and probably prevented some 



FINANCIAL PROBLEMS 243 

coastwise movements which might have been under- 
taken if this risk had not stood in the way. Bush- 
nell's machine also inspired the pen of Francis 
Hopkinson, whose "Battle of the Kegs" appeared 
at a time when the enemy were much alarmed by 
amazing submarine explosions in the vicinity of 
their fleet, and added ridicule to their alarm. 

Bushnell appeared before the Governor and Coun- 
cil with models of his machine, and was given every 
facility which the State could afiford for carrying 
on his enterprise. He was also recommended to 
Congress, in the hope that Federal aid would be 
granted him; and in 1779 he was warmly recom- 
mended by Governor Trumbull to Washington, who 
granted him the positon of Captain in his corps of 
sappers and miners, which did good service at 
Yorktown. 

By no means the least of the cares and anxieties 
which beset the Governor during this eventful year 
1778 was the money problem. Connecticut's policy 
since 1776 had been, at his earnest recommendation, 
to issue no more State bills of credit, but to meet 
expenses by direct taxation. The expedients of 
Congress for raising money through State loan 
ofl[ices, lotteries, and other devices failed to accom- 
plish their object; and in 1778 Congress resorted to 
Connecticut's simple and sound expedient of taxa- 
tion. The sum of ^5,000,000 was apportioned 
among the thirteen States, the share of Connecticut 
being ^600,000, which, although far beyond her 
just proportion, Connecticut promptly assumed and 
promptly provided for by laying a tax to raise the 



244 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

money. The correspondence of the Governor with 
the Connecticut delegates to the Continental Con- 
gress and with President Laurens is full of recom- 
mendations, discussions and suggestions on this 
all-important subject of the finances of the country, 
in the hope that some uniform and sound plan might 
be adopted by which the thirteen States might 
work together in harmony for the common good. 

In November, 1778, the Governor's son Jonathan 
was unanimously appointed Comptroller of the 
Treasury of the United States, a position which, 
as Roger Sherman says, placed him at the head of 
this department. 

The newly appointed Comptroller had been in 
Philadelphia for some time, endeavoring to arrange 
with Congress for a settlement of the accounts of 
his late brother Joseph, and no doubt had shown his 
financial ability in a way to recommend him to this 
office. Sherman at this time had been the means of 
reorganizing the Treasury Department, and doubt- 
less favored the appointment of the Comptroller. 
This position, during the time he held it, enabled 
him to give valuable information to his father 
regarding the state of the national finances. 

In addition to his solicitude for the finances of 
the country, Trumbull was also deeply solicitous 
regarding the Articles of Confederation, to which 
some of the States were so slow to agree. His 
correspondence with the Connecticut delegates makes 
frequent mention of the need of confederation, as, 
for example, on the twenty-fifth of August: 

"I am exceedingly anxious to see our confedera- 



CONFEDERATION URGED 245 

tlon compleated. The four States — how long 
must the others wait for them? If they are not 
like to comply soon, should we not confederate 
without them?" 

And again, on the eighth of December: 

"A foreign loan taken upon proper principles 
appears to me much more eligible. There is no 
doubt it may be obtained when Confederation 
is settled, and funds for it can be laid. Why are 
not the Articles of Confederation concluded? Is 
it not needful this and the affair of our finances 
be finally settled before the enemy leave us? Will 
not these things left for an after-settlement breed 
internal differences?" 

In view of subsequent events, there was something 
prophetic in these questions of Connecticut's patri- 
otic Governor. 

In the midst of this solicitude for the general 
good, it is rarely that we get even the slightest 
personal reflection. The documents he has left 
us are for the most part of a public and impersonal 
character, continually informed and inspired by an 
abiding religious faith which was so much a part 
of his public life that it frequently appears in his 
correspondence and official utterances. We may 
catch something of his view of his own life, in con- 
nection with his broad view of public affairs, from 
the following extract from a letter which he wrote 
to Silas Deane, with whom he was then on intimate 
terms on October 6, 1778. Speaking of the death 
of his son, he says : 

"The treatment he met, without thanks or re- 



246 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

ward for more than two years' indefatigable labours 
and risque, grieved him to the heart, brought on and 
increased his bodily disorders, preyed on his con- 
stitution, exhausted his spirits, wore them out, and 
finished his days. Mine are nearly terminated; 
may afflictions wean me from a fondness for life, 
and quicken my preparations for an exchange of 
worlds. The curtain Is thin, yet perfectly dark, 
save what is revealed by the Lord. We live by 
faith and not by sight. We are In the latter end of 
the last days. The marvellous events of Providence 
seem to open to our view a rising empire in this 
western world, to enlarge our Redeemer's kingdom 
and to pull down the Papacy. Another, the Russian, 
is rising in the north quarters to subdue the Otto- 
man, to dry up the waters of the River Euphrates, 
to prepare the way for the kings of the east. 

"A commonwealth is the most rational and 
equitable form of government; it grows and flourishes 
where virtue is its object; it decays and sinks where 
luxury, the source of corruption, prevails and in- 
creaseth. 

"May these States become free and independent, 
union and harmony be established, virtue encouraged 
and maintained, and peace restored and confirmed 
with all the world." 

Within a week from the time of writing this 
letter Governor Trumbull had completed his sixty- 
eighth year. 



CHAPTER XXII 

SCARCITY OF PROVISIONS GOVERNOR, TRYON AGAIN 

THREATENS AN INVASION HE ATTACKS NEV^ HAVEN 

AND BURNS FAIRFIELD AND NORWALK ARREST OF 

WILLIAM SAMUEL JOHNSON HIS RELEASE FINAN- 
CIAL AFFAIRS — -Trumbull's correspondence with 

VAN DER CAPELLAN HIS PLANS FOR A HISTORY 

OF THE REVOLUTION 

THE continued and incessant drain upon 
Connecticut began to be more keenly felt 
than ever before at the opening of the 
year 1779. Hay reached the price of two 
hundred dollars per ton at about this time, and 
Commissary General Wadsworth speaks feelingly 
of the difficulties of his situation in a letter to Gov- 
ernor Trumbull dated April sixth, telling how he has 
scoured the country for flour especially, and finds 
little or none to be had. He expresses fears that 
the troops at New London are at that moment 
without bread, and speaks of the absurdity of 
seizing flour under the law in the following words : 

"If it were possible to obtain bread for the army 
by the present law, the expense is so great that the 
Treasury of the United States is not sufficient to 
pay for it." 

He encloses a statement of the cost of thirty- 
four "casks" of flour, containing about the quantity 
which our present barrels contain, and costing by 

247 



248 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

the process of seizure and appraisal the sum of 
£1412, IS. 8d. 

In the eariier days of this year, Yale College 
was dismissed some three weeks earlier than usual, 
and the winter vacation extended two weeks beyond 
the usual time, because it was impossible for the 
steward to procure flour "to uphold Commons in 
the Hall."^ On the second of February we find 
President Stiles writing to Governor Trumbull ask- 
ing for an order on the Commissary General for 
fifty or sixty barrels of flour for the use of the college. 

About this time the soul of the Governor is vexed 
by a communication from Governor Tryon of New 
York, again apparently attempting pacification by 
mail, and to that end sending "some publications 
of the loyal city of New York" and asking for 
newspapers from Connecticut; at the same time 
assuring the Governor that he has nothing to conceal 
*'but our military operations; and we should be 
happy if a prudent and sensible moderation on your 
side would give us occasion to make them unneces- 
sary." To this communication no reply appears 
on record. Immediate measures, however, were 
taken by the Governor, on his own initiative, to 
strengthen the defenses of New London, which 
town it was believed would soon be attacked by 
Tryon. The Governor's course was promptly ap- 
proved by the Council of Safety, and reinforce- 
ments were ordered to New London to such an 
extent that the cautious Tryon refrained from making 
the expected attack. 

^Literary Diary of Ezra Stiles, D.D., LL.D., vol. 2, pp. 315, 316, 320, 321. 



RAID ON NEW HAVEN 249 

For three months and more from this time, 
Tryon appears to have been watching for a vulner- 
able point on the Connecticut coast; and early in 
July made a demonstration towards Norwalk and 
Fairfield, in which such portion of his forces as 
were engaged were repulsed by the brave home 
guard of these two towns. This was, perhaps, a 
reconnoitering expedition, or a feint on Tryon's 
part, as the entire force engaged in this demonstra- 
tion was reported to Governor Trumbull to be 
about two hundred men, with six vessels 
carrying in all about twenty guns. In the previous 
February, Tryon had made a border raid at Horse- 
neck, destroying the salt works there, and giving 
the occasion for Putnam's famous ride to Stratford, 
in which he exceeded the eulogy on his tombstone 
by daring to lead where no one dared to follow. 

Tryon's demonstration at Norwalk and Fairfield 
was the signal for a series of raids on defenseless 
Connecticut towns. On the morning of Monday, 
the fifth of July, as the people of New Haven were 
preparing to celebrate the third anniversary of 
American independence, a fleet of forty vessels 
under the naval command of Sir George Collier 
and the military command of William Tryon and 
General George Garth appeared off West Haven, 
where about one thousand men under Garth were 
landed, and later at East Haven, where about 
twelve hundred men under Tryon landed with the 
purpose of joining Garth at New Haven. Both 
these divisions met with gallant opposition from 
the hastily gathered defenders, among whom were 



250 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

a number of Yale students together with the vener- 
able President of Yale, Doctor Naphtali Daggett. 
Having entered New Haven, a scene of plunder, 
murder and rapine took place which goes far to 
blacken the record of the British and Hessian 
soldiers of the Revolution. The approach of four 
regiments of militia under General Andrew Ward 
caused Tryon and his men to make a hasty retreat 
to their ships on the following morning. The news 
of this raid was reported to Governor Trumbull by 
General Ward from his military point of view, and 
in fuller detail by Peter Colt. 

The raid on New Haven was followed by a similar 
attack on Fairfield on the eighth of July. Un- 
fortunately, no organized plan for meeting this 
attack could be made; and though the handful 
of men who were able to oppose the invaders stood 
their ground bravely, the work of destruction was 
quickly carried out, and practically the whole 
town, with some of the outlying parishes, perished 
in the flames. Here, as at New Haven, a proclama- 
tion was read or published, offering indemnity to 
those who peacefully occupied their homes during 
the invasion, and to civil and military officers who 
"give proof of their penitence and voluntary sub- 
mission." Before this proclamation had reached 
those to whom it was addressed, one half the town 
of Fairfield was in flames, and the other half doomed. 

Quickly withdrawing from Fairfield, under a 
harassing fire, the fleet crossed to Huntington, 
Long Island, where it remained until the tenth, 
taking in supplies. Norwalk was the next victim. 



NORWALK DESTROYED 251 

Early in the morning of July eleventh a landing was 
effected, and Garth and Tryon approached the 
fated town by two different routes. Although a 
force of seven hundred militia had been despatched 
to Norwalk by the Governor's orders, under General 
Oliver Wolcott, and a small force of Continentals 
under General Samuel H. Parsons was also present, 
but little opposition to the invaders was made, 
and Norwalk was also burned to the ground. 

This ended Tryon's series of raids on Connecticut. 
To reinforce the raw militia under General Wolcott, 
Washington had now ordered two Connecticut 
brigades, under General William Heath, to march 
from their headquarters in the Highlands "towards 
Bedford." Having learned of the raids on New 
Haven, Fairfield and Norwalk, Heath marched his 
two brigades towards Stamford, which town ap- 
peared to be threatened by Tryon, whose caution 
caused him to refrain from the proposed attack 
in view of the American force now opposed to him. 

The situation in Connecticut was now serious and 
alarming, and the Governor and Council of Safety 
busied themselves in providing as fully as possible 
for the defense of New London and other important 
towns along the coast which might be in danger of 
an attack. These raids of Tryon's resulted, of 
course, in great hardships to the people of New 
Haven, Fairfield and Norwalk, the last two towns 
being practically wiped out of existence, and the 
first having suffered from the brutal outrages, 
plundering, murders and rapine to which all three 
were subjected. 



252 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

In connection with the alarm and indignation of 
the sufferers and their neighbors, an episode oc- 
curred which placed Governor Trumbull in a very 
delicate and disagreeable position. This was the 
arrest of William Samuel Johnson, whose letters 
from England and whose excellent service as agent 
for Connecticut some ten years before this time have 
been fully referred to in some of the earlier chapters. 
At the outbreak of the Revolution — or, more 
properly, from the time of his fruitless embassy to 
General Gage at Boston — Johnson had retired 
to private life in his native town of Stratford, be- 
lieving that independence could never be achieved 
by his young and feeble country through war with 
the mighty Mother Country. He had, however, 
remained strictly neutral. At the time of Tryon's 
raids, the people of Stratford were panic-stricken. 
Knowing Johnson to be well acquainted with Tryon, 
they insisted that he should intercede with him to 
save their town from destruction. Johnson plainly 
said to them that such intercession would be use- 
less. A town meeting was then called, at which 
resolutions were passed that Johnson and others 
should undertake this mission; upon which, be- 
lieving himself legally bound as a townsman to 
obey the instructions of this all-potent assembly, 
he consented to do what he could, and drew up a 
paper to be signed by leading townsmen, who made 
the request in writing, and promised support and 
indemnity to himself and those who acted with him. 
News of this proceeding was at once communi- 
cated to General Oliver Wolcott, who despatched 



ARREST OF JOHNSON 253 

Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Dimon to Stratford. 
He summoned Johnson and others before him and 
subjected them to a rigid examination. It was 
reported to General Wolcott that though Johnson's 
words "were smoother than oil, yet they were very 
swords'' in his replies to the questions of his exam- 
iners, as may well be imagined in view of his 
diplomatic experiences of ten years before in London.^ 
On receiving Colonel Dimon's report of the 
examination. General Wolcott ordered that Doctor 
Johnson be sent "under guard or otherwise" to 
the town of Farmington, to be delivered "to the 
care and custody of the civil authority of that 
town" to be kept "under such proper restraints as 
to prevent his having any correspondence with the 
enemy." Johnson was thus, to all intents and 
purposes, made a prisoner. He was, however, 
allowed to proceed to Farmington without a guard, 
on giving his word of honor that he would at once 
give himself up to the selectmen. On his arrival, 
these authorities found, on consultation among 
themselves, that they had no reason for detaining 
him. Johnson, though agreeing with them, proposed 
that he should be allowed to proceed under parole 
to the Governor and Council of Safety and, after 
stating his case, abide by their decision. Thus, 
probably for the first time in the four years of the 
war, Governor Trumbull met and doubtless enter- 
tained his old friend and correspondent, Doctor 
Johnson, under circumstances very different from 

1 See Wolcott papers in Connecticut Historical Society's manuscript col- 
lections. 



254 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

those under which he had been accustomed to meet 
and correspond with him. Knowing Johnson's char- 
acter as he did, there is no doubt that he placed 
impHcit confidence in his statement, and regarded 
him in the same friendly light as in former times. 

The meeting of the Council of Safety, by a bare 
majority, failed to agree with the legislative Council 
which voted to release Johnson. On the following day, 
July twenty-ninth, the Council of Safety met again. 
The Governor laid before the Council the papers 
in the case. Doctor Johnson appeared and was 
granted a hearing, and was at last allowed to re- 
turn to his home at Stratford, with a letter to the 
civil authorities written by the Governor, stating 
that he was allowed to return by and with the advice 
of the Legislative Council and the Council of Safety. 

From this time forward Doctor Johnson remained 
peacefully at his home in Stratford, carrying on his 
favorite literary pursuits until called upon to act 
as counsel for Connecticut in the Susquehanna case 
in 1782. In the critical times which followed, his 
native State could not dispense with his services, 
and his record as a delegate to the Constitutional 
Convention of 1787 completes his long and honor- 
able service to Connecticut in a way which honors 
his name. 

The financial condition of the country continued, 
in the year 1779, to grow from bad to worse. In 
May the Continental Congress called upon the 
thirteen States to contribute the sum of forty- 
five million dollars to the general war fund. The 
amount apportioned to Connecticut was ^5,100,000 



FINANCIAL AFFAIRS 255 

while Massachusetts had but ^6,000,000 as her 
share. During the entire year, it is stated that 
Congress called on Connecticut for the sum of 
^8,500,000.^ It is difficult to determine the exact 
amount which the State paid under these calls; 
but we have it on the official statement of Governor 
Trumbull that during the year 1779 *'this State 
raised nine millions eight hundred & sixteen thou- 
sand and fifty-six & one third dollars for Con- 
tinental and State purposes." ^ Taxes were laid 
at the May session of the General Assembly to the 
extent of nineteen shillings to the pound, payable 
at three fixed dates. And owing to the rapid de- 
crease in the value of paper money, higher rates 
were yet in prospect. To Trumbull, as to other 
statesmen of the day, the urgent need of a foreign 
loan was apparent. But the difficulty in negotiat- 
ing a loan from a foreign country with no security 
but the justice of our cause and the good faith of 
the people was a serious difficulty indeed. Of all 
foreign nations Holland appeared the most eligible 
for this purpose, for reasons which need hardly be 
discussed here. 

And of all the good friends of America in that 
resourceful little country, John Derk, Baron Van 
der Capellan, appeared best suited to advance her 
interest in Holland. His views in home politics 
were so liberal as to exclude him for four years 
from his seat in the Assembly, owing to his advocacy 

1 Stuart. "Life of Trumbull", p. 452. 

^ Letter to Samuel Huntington, in Massachusetts Historical Society Col- 
lections, 7th series, vol. 3, p. 62. 



256 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

of the rights of the people of Holland, and his at- 
tempts to relieve them from feudal oppression. 
This nobleman was an intimate friend of Governor 
Trumbull's, and the correspondence between them 
had for some time been frequent. Among other 
suggestions, the good Baron had requested that the 
Governor should prepare and send to him, "a 
description of the present state and advantages of 
America ; of the forms of government in its different 
republics; of the facility with which strangers can 
establish themselves, and find subsistence; of the 
price of lands both cultivated and unimproved; of 
cattle, provisions, etc.; with a succinct history of 
the present war, and the cruelties committed by the 
English. This," says the Baron, "would excite 
astonishment in a country where America is known 
but through the medium of gazettes." 

Notwithstanding the constant and engrossing 
cares which his official duties imposed upon the 
Governor, he at once undertook the task of drawing 
up such a statement as the Baron Van der Capellan 
had suggested; and within a month had prepared 
a letter which a century and more later filled thirty 
large octavo pages in the printed Collections of 
the Massachusetts Historical Society. This docu- 
ment was duly forwarded to the Baron Van der 
Capellan by the Governor's good friend. President 
Henry Laurens. It was in due time received in 
Holland, and its contents carefully made known to 
the Baron's most influential acquaintances, result- 
ing in liberal subscriptions by himself, his kinsmen 
and others to a loan to the United States of America. 



LITER J RT PLANS 257 

In this connection, it is interesting to note that 
Governor Trumbull had in mind at about this time 
a plan for writing a history of the American Revolu- 
tion, which for some reason he never carried to 
completion. Perhaps he contented himself at this 
advanced period of his life with leaving the work 
to be embodied in the more extended plan of a 
"General History of the United States of America" 
which his cousin, the Reverend Benjamin Trumbull, 
undertook to write at a later date, but which he 
did not live long enough to complete. In this under- 
taking Governor Trumbull urged his cousin to 
cover the entire period from the discovery of America 
to the close of the Revolution. But one volume of 
the three contemplated in this plan ever reached 
the printer. In view of the success attending the 
Governor's correspondence with the Baron Van der 
Capellan, he was doubtless impressed with the 
importance of acquainting distinguished foreigners 
with the true state of affairs in America. Probably 
with that motive he loaned to the Chevalier Anne- 
Cesar de la Luzerne, minister from France to the 
United States, a manuscript which the Chevalier 
calls in his correspondence "a plan of the history of 
America." It appears, however, from mention 
made of this manuscript by the Marquis Francois 
Jean de Chastellux in his "Voyages dans I'Amerique 
septentrionale", quoting the Governor's own men- 
tion of it, that it was only the introduction to a 
history of the American Revolution, — "only a 
historical resume, quite superficial, and not lacking 
in partiality in the manner in which the events of 



258 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

the war are represented." It Is not surprising that 
to this criticism of the Governor's historical writings 
this nobleman of the gay court of Louis XVI. should 
have added the following personal description: 

'*He is over seventy years old, his entire life is 
devoted to affairs, which he loves with a passion, 
whether they be great or small; or, rather, there 
are none for him of this latter class." 

Although the military operations of importance 
were now confined to the southern States, there 
were calls upon Connecticut to fill her quota of 
men, and active measures were taken to comply with 
these calls and to keep up the coast guard and local 
militia which might be needed at any time to defend 
the State from such invasions as she had suffered 
from during the year. 



CHAPTER XXIII 

DISTRESSING CONDITIONS OF THE COUNTRY — FINAN- 
CIAL AFFAIRS AND MEASURES CALLS ON CONNEC- 
TICUT — DEATH OF THE GOVERNOR'S WIFE FRENCH 

HUSSARS QUARTERED AT LEBANON AND COLCHESTER — 
GOVERNOR APPOINTED TO SUPERVISE STATE FINANCES 

DURING the year 1779 the calls on Con- 
necticut for money and provisions for the 
Continental Army had been most urgent. 
Rhode Island, too, owing to the presence of an army 
within her narrow confines, had been reduced to the 
verge of famine, and much relief had been given her 
by her more fortunate neighbor. But the greater and 
carefully husbanded resources of Connecticut felt 
the Strain, so that the most active measures of 
embargo and prevention of illicit trade were put 
in force. In money matters the State had found a 
slight, but temporary relief from the proceeds of 
prize vessels and cargoes brought in by State pri- 
vateers and other war vessels; but this relief was 
only a drop in an empty bucket. 

Early in 1780, distressing letters began to come 
from General Washington telling of a starving 
army on the verge of mutiny for lack of food and 
pay. Governor Trumbull found a new difficulty 
to contend with in his earnest attempts to afford 
relief. The farmers who had been selling cattle and 
provisions to the United States under contracts 

259 



26o JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

with its commissaries had not received any pay- 
ments for a year or more ; and if they should receive 
the amounts now due them the value of the money 
would be less than half the sums their contracts 
called for, owing to the rapidly declining rates for 
continental bills. For this reason, the large dealers 
upon whom the commissaries depended were un- 
able to replenish their stocks by purchases from the 
smaller farms, and were unwilling to run the risk 
of such delays in payment as they had already ex- 
perienced. This situation was explained to Wash- 
ington by Trumbull as fully and clearly as possible, 
with the added assurance that "whatever is in the 
power of this small State to effect for the salvation 
of the country will be executed with earnest pleasure." 

And now begins an urgent correspondence of the 
Governor with the Connecticut delegates to Con- 
gress and with President Samuel Huntington, urg- 
ing that measures be taken to pay the amounts due 
under commissaries' contracts, and suggesting to 
the delegates measures for "introducing a stable 
currency and medium of commerce", on the sound 
basis of contributions by taxation from the different 
States. The delays in the action of Congress in the 
important measures of supplying the army also 
bring out something more than suggestions from 
the Governor to the delegates and President. There 
was, no doubt, a complete agreement of opinion 
on the part of Trumbull with Washington when, 
at a later date, the latter wrote him: 

"As I always speak to your Excellency in the 
confidence of friendship, I shall not scruple to con- 



FINANCIAL MEASURES 261 

fess that the prevailing politics, for considerable 
time past, have filled me with inexpressible anxiety 
and apprehension, and have uniformly appeared 
to me to threaten the subversion of our indepen- 
dence. I hope a period to them is now arrived, 

and that a change of measures will save us from 

" 1 
rum. ^ 

It seems safe to say that a more formidable 
enemy than the British army at the beginning of 
the year 1780 was the continental paper m.oney, 
which during the previous year had been issued to 
the extent of nearly ^150,000,000,^ and was now so 
rapidly declining in purchasing power that Washing- 
ton's statement was hardly an exaggeration when 
he said that a cartload of money was needed to buy 
a cartload of provisions. His statement that the 
financial condition of the country was "the only 
hope, the last resource of the enemy" need hardly 
be questioned here, though the financial condition 
of Great Britain was, at the same time, a matter 
of grave concern to her statesmen. 

To meet the alarming crisis, the Continental 
Congress resorted to the expedient of a contraction 
of the currency by calling in and destroying the 
old issues, and by issuing new bills for one twentieth 
of the amount destroyed, these new bills having 
six years to run, and being payable, with interest 
at five per cent., in specie. To accomplish this 
measure, it became necessary to call upon the 

^Washington to Trumbull, June 27, 1780. In Collections of Massachusetts 
Historical Society, vol. 10, 5th series. 

^$140,052,480. Bronson, "Connecticut Currency", p. 114. 



262 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

States for contributions of fifteen million dollars 
monthly in old Continental money for thirteen 
months. The measure was, to some extent, in ac- 
cordance with Governor Trumbull's views, and he 
promptly laid the matter before the General As- 
sembly at its April session. The delegates in Con- 
gress had written him, both officially and personally, 
urging that legislation be promptly had by Con- 
necticut to carry out this measure. Appreciating, 
no doubt, the importance of relief by any measure 
on which Congress could agree, and fully informed 
by the Governor of the situation as stated by 
the Connecticut delegates, the General Assembly 
promptly passed "An Act for the Establishment 
of Public Credit, and to Provide for the Exigencies 
of this State", which provided unequivocally for 
meeting the requirements of Congress. So en- 
couraging was the example of Connecticut in this 
time of gloom and despondency that Oliver Ells- 
worth writes to the Governor, under date of May 
ninth : 

"I thought it my duty to read in Congress the 
accounts I had received from Connecticut, & was 
kept in countenance by their just approbation." 

A month later he writes reporting encouraging 
progress by various States in adopting measures 
similar to those of Connecticut. It is hardly neces- 
sary to add that Connecticut provided for her 
share in this new measure by laying taxes, as usual 
in such cases. 

The exigencies of the times were such the Con- 
gress thought it necessary to call upon the States 



DRASTIC MEASURES 263 

for provisions at fixed values in addition to the 
money called for. The share of Connecticut in 
this call was 78,400 hundredweight of beef, loii 
bushels of salt, 68,558 gallons of rum, and 500 tons 
of hay. Measures were duly enacted to supply 
these provisions. The share of the State in the 
money called for was ^1,700,000, monthly in con- 
tinental money, or at the rate of one dollar in specie 
to forty dollars of continental money. This was 
one ninth of the whole amount called for by Con- 
gress, — a large proportion for a small State. The 
payment of this amount entitled the State to issue 
bills to the extent of one twentieth of the continental 
money contributed, which bills were to be guaran- 
teed by the United States, and were payable, with 
interest at five per cent, at the expiration of six 
years, in Spanish milled dollars. So slow, however, 
were the officials in the mechanical part of this 
undertaking that Connecticut could not wait for 
the guarantee of the United States, and issued bills 
of a similar kind on the sole credit of the State, 
leaving the new continental guarantee for future 
adjustment. Thus, for the first time since 1776, 
and for the last time during the war, was paper 
money issued by the State, and provided for, as 
usual, by taxation. 

In this time of stress, news comes to the Governor 
by a letter from the Chevalier de la Luzerne, which 
is in one way joyous news and in another way 
grievous. On the seventeenth of May, the Chevalier 
writes to the Governor that a fleet is nearly due 
from France, bringing a large body of French troops 



264 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

to reinforce the Americans and that Connecticut is ex- 
pected to furnish fresh provisions for them. The terms 
of purchase, however, form a pleasing contrast to 
the custom of delayed payments which the United 
States had estabhshed; for the agent for France 
comes furnished with good bills of exchange to the 
extent of about ^16,000, and with authority to 
provide cash payment or bills of exchange for any 
balance which this first installment does not cover. 
At the same time comes a letter from Washington, 
urging the Governor to prompt compliance with 
this request, so that our allies may find on arrival 
that every exertion has been made to meet their 
needs. One thousand oxen and twelve hundred 
sheep form the first requisition for the allies, in 
addition to which three hundred good horses are 
also wanted. These animals were collected as fast 
as possible, and held in pasture near the coast, 
awaiting the arrival of the French troops from 
Newport, on their way through Connecticut. 

Although this comparatively small purchase was 
made on a cash basis, it was found necessary, in 
the following July, to lend to the French commis- 
sioner, Louis Dominique Ethis de Corny, the sum of 
£20,000 in the new bills of Connecticut, to be re- 
placed on the arrival of funds from France, which 
subsequently proved to be very slow in coming. 

In addition to this new call on the State for 
money and provisions, demands of all kinds from 
all quarters are constantly pressing upon the Gov- 
ernor. Even transportation for such supplies as 
Quartermaster-general Greene has ready to send 



HEAVr REQUISITIONS 265 

to the front cannot be had for lack of money and 
lack of credit; and the Governor is earnestly ap- 
pealed to by General Greene to furnish money for 
this purpose, with which request he complies, at 
a cost of £1020. A month later, and Washington, 
expecting an attack on West Point, urges for a 
supply of salted provisions and live cattle to be 
immediately sent forward to that important strong- 
hold, to provide against a siege. Within a week 
from the receipt of this letter the provisions are on 
the way. A week later two thousand men are 
drafted from the militia of Connecticut, and ordered 
forward as a reinforcement for West Point, at 
Washington's request. 

Added to this particular and promptly rendered 
service come calls from Baron Steuben for arms, 
and from other quarters for ammunition and cloth- 
ing. And throughout all this time of strain and 
anxiety, the Governor and Council of Safety were 
continually confronted with the fact that enlist- 
ments were more difficult than ever before, not- 
withstanding bounties which seemed princely to the 
plain farmers and others. 

The war had now been actively waged for five 
years. Discouraging news was coming from the 
south; Charleston had fallen, and it was supposed 
by Washington that Sir Henry Clinton, flushed with 
victory, would soon appear before West Point, as 
good generalship would lead him to do. Fortunately, 
he did not seize this golden opportunity, and later 
even the treachery of Arnold failed to place this 
important stronghold in his grasp. But with the 



266 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

continual disasters in the southern campaign, re- 
sulting from the utter inefficiency of Gates, who had 
been placed in command by Congress, the gloom 
continued; and with the blockading of the French 
allies at Newport soon after their arrival, and of the 
second installment at Brest before leaving France, 
the aid from that powerful ally was, for the time 
being, neutralized, and the apathy of despair seemed 
to settle upon the people. 

But in the time when everything seemed darkest, 
no tinge of despair is to be found in Governor Trum- 
bull's letters to Washington and others. On the 
contrary, these letters breathe the utmost hope- 
fulness, telling of good stores of supplies to be drawn 
from the old Provision State, and of the belief that 
its quota of men for the army will soon be com- 
pleted; and reiterating the abiding religious faith 
which sustains him in every time of need. At the 
same time, no details of useful expedients for carry- 
ing on the good fight are disregarded, and he sug- 
gests concerted and systematic action by the New 
England States in forwarding supplies. These meas- 
ures formed the principal business of the Boston 
convention of August, 1780, and the Hartford con- 
vention of the November following. 

In the midst of the harassing and perplexing 
cares of this year, a sad bereavement was added to 
the gloom of political and military affairs. On 
May 29, 1780, the Governor's wife, Faith, died. 
Thus was severed a marriage tie of forty-five years, 
during which time he had enjoyed the love and 
sympathy of this devoted wife. Her health had 



DEATH OF MRS. TRUMBULL 267 

been feeble for some years. Two years and more 
before her death, we find her son Jonathan Junior 
writing to his father at Hartford: 

"24th Feb. 1778. . . . My mother has been 
exceeding lame, occasioned I suppose by cold, 
could scarcely move yesterday; is somewhat better." 

Although apparently for some years an invalid, 
it is to be believed from all we can learn of her firm 
and devoted character that she bore up bravely 
under her suff^erings, and never lost sight of her 
duties as wife and mother. A sketch of her parent- 
age and ancestry, with some mention of her personal 
character, has been given in an early chapter of this 
biography. To Washington and to Gates, Trum- 
bull wrote conveying the sad news of his loss, and 
from Washington he received the following con- 
dolence in prompt response: 

"I most sincerely condole with your Excellency 
on the late severe stroke which you have met with 
in your family. Although calamities of this kind 
are what we should all be prepared to expect, yet 
few, upon their arrival, are able to bear them with 
becoming fortitude. Your determination, however, 
to seek assistance from the Great Disposer of all 
human events is highly laudable, and is the source 
from whence the truest consolation is to be drawn. 

*'I am, with greatest afi^ection, respect and esteem, 
Dear sir, 

"Your most obedient and humble servant, 

"G- Washington." 

Many tributes were paid in the public press and 



268 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

elsewhere to her patriotism, benevolence, and Chris- 
tian virtues. 

On the stone marking her burial place in the 
family tomb at Lebanon, the following inscription 
may still be read: 

"Sacred to the memory of Madam Faith Trum- 
bull, the amiable lady of Gov. Trumbull. Born at 
Duxbury, Mass., a.d. 1718. Happy and beloved 
in her connubial state, she lived a virtuous, charita- 
ble and Christian life at Lebanon, in Connecticut, 
and died lamented by numerous friends, a.d. 1780, 
aged 62 years." 

Towards the close of this gloomy year it was 
found necessary to call upon Connecticut for winter 
quarters for the French hussars of Lauzun's legion, 
since the exorbitant prices of forage and other 
supplies at Newport made this step necessary. 
Quarters were provided at Lebanon and Colchester, 
and the Governor's son David, with Jeremiah Wads- 
worth and Jedediah Elderkin, were appointed to 
provide barracks for these troops. The feelings 
of the gay Due de Lauzun on changing from the 
congenial surroundings of Newport to the strange 
surroundings of Lebanon are described, with all the 
extravagance of a Frenchman of the eighteenth 
century, in the memoirs of the Duke himself. He 
says: 

"I left for Lebanon on the loth of November. 
We had not yet had letters from France. Siberia 
alone can be compared to Lebanon, which is only 
composed of cabins scattered through immense 
forests." 



THE FRENCH IN CONNECTICUT 269 

The presence of these French troops at Lebanon 
was no doubt a matter of great social importance 
to that Httle town, and has been so gracefully and 
impressively mentioned by Donald G. Mitchell, 
that a quotation from him will best describe the 
scene and the men: 

"And what a contrast it is, this gay young noble- 
man, carved out, as it were, from the dissolute age 
of Louis XV., who had sauntered under the colon- 
nades of the Trianon, and had kissed the hand of the 
Pompadour, now strutting among the staid dames 
of Norwich and Lebanon! How they must have 
looked at him and his fine troopers from under their 
knitted hoods! You know, I suppose, his after 
history; how he went back to Paris, and among the 
wits there was wont to mimic the way in which the 
stiff old Connecticut Governor had said grace at 
his table. Ah, he did not know that in Governor 
Trumbull, and in all such men, is the material to 
found an enduring State; and in himself, and all 
such men, only the inflammable material to burn one 
down. There is a life written of Governor Trum- 
bull, and there is a life written of the Marquis of 
Lauzun. The first is full of deeds of quiet heroism, 
ending with a tranquil and triumphant death; the 
other is full of rankest gallantries, and ends with a 
little spurt of blood under the knife of the guillo- 
tine upon the gay Place de la Concorde." ^ 

Governor Trumbull's acquaintance with distin- 
guished Frenchmen did not begin at Lebanon on 

' Address at the bi-centennial celebration of the settlement of Norwich, 
Connecticut. 



270 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

the arrival of the Due de Lauzun; for in the pre- 
vious September he had met Count Rochambeau, 
Admiral Ternay and Lafayette at Hartford, in the 
first conference which they held with Washington, 
Knox and others. Their reception at Hartford was 
a brilliant affair for these stringent times, though 
Quartermaster Nehemiah Hubbard was obliged to 
apply to the Governor for funds to meet the ex- 
penses of the entertainment, which amounted to 
£345, a sum which the Council of Safety readily 
granted, to meet the requisition which the Governor 
had issued. The conference at Hartford had no 
particular effect upon the military campaign at this 
time, although it gave an opportunity for an ex- 
change of views between the military leaders, in 
which, no doubt. Governor Trumbull contributed 
valuable information and advice. 

An important duty entrusted to the Governor 
by the General Assembly towards the close of this 
year 1780 was the supervision of the financial 
affairs of the State. In order to show what was 
expected of him, it seems necessary to quote the 
resolution adopted regarding this matter at the 
session of November 29th : 

"Resolved: That his Excellency the Governor 
be, and he is hereby empowered and requested to 
superintend the subject of finance in this State 
until the sessions of the Assembly in May next; 
to examine into the state of the public debts and 
credits, to make the proper estimates of the amount 
of public expenditures made and wanted, and of the 
ways and means already provided, and what will be 



SUPERFISES STATE FINANCES 271 

raised by the same, and to superintend and direct 
the treasury, that effectual measures may be forth- 
with taken, that all arrearages of public taxes 
from the respective towns be forthwith paid up and 
settled; also to superintend the Pay Table, and 
find out the true state of the public accounts therein, 
so that a true state of the public finances may be 
fairly, truly and plainly laid before the Assembly at 
said sessions." 

In addition to this he was also empowered to 
employ assistants, and to negotiate a loan on the 
credit of the State in Europe or America, not ex- 
ceeding £200,000, for seven to twenty years at 
six per cent, interest. 



CHAPTER XXIV 

CONTINUED GLOOM — IMPRISONMENT OF COLONEL 

JOHN TRUMBULL HIS RELEASE AND RETURN 

CONTINUED CALLS FOR PROVISIONS FOR THE ARMY 

THE WETHERSFIELD CONFERENCE THE GOVERNOR 

AND COUNCIL GO TO DANBURY THE YORKTOWN 

CAMPAIGN THE GROTON MASSACRE — THE SUR- 
RENDER OF CORNWALLIS 

IF the dark days of 1776 and 1777 were the 
"times that tried men's souls", the days of 
1780 were no less dark, after four years more 
of the stress and strain of war, during a series of 
reverses and defeats under the miserably incom- 
petent management of Gates at the south, where the 
only active military campaign of the year was in 
progress. Arnold's treason had added to the gloom 
of the year, and only an abiding faith in the right- 
eousness of his country's cause sustained the vener- 
able Governor of Connecticut in these dark days, 
through which he constantly toiled and hoped and 
prayed as ever. 

The year 1781 opened in the thickest gloom. 
A starving army, ill-clad and unpaid, began the 
year with mutiny. Two Pennsylvania regiments 
left camp in January to demand from Congress a 
redress of their wrongs. The affair resulted in the 
killing of two of their officers who attempted to 
control them, and in rioting and bloodshed. How 

272 



ARREST OF JOHN TRUMBULL 273 

far the mutiny might extend among other troops 
was a serious question. Never before had such 
urgently repeated calls come from Washington to 
Governor Trumbull for money to pay the soldiers; 
for food and for clothing. These urgent calls were 
continued almost incessantly for the first six months 
of the year, and longer. General Knox was sent 
by Washington to New England in January, and 
visited Governor Trumbull and his Council in 
person, explaining to them more effectively than 
even the letters of Washington could explain the 
dire need of provisions and supplies of all kinds. 

While this most alarming situation was calling 
for the utmost exertions on the part of the Governor, 
and was causing him the greatest anxiety and per- 
plexity, a personal anxiety was also constantly 
staring him in the face. In November, 1780, his 
son John, while pursuing his art studies in London, 
was arrested and imprisoned under charge of "the 
crime of high treason." He had been assured of 
protection against such procedure by Lord George 
Germaine; the sole precaution being that he must 
shun the smallest indiscretion, and avoid 'Apolitical 
intervention." But on November 15, 1780, the 
news of the execution of Andre had reached London ; 
and owing to Colonel Trumbull's previous rank of 
Deputy Adjutant General in the American army, 
it seemed, as he says in his autobiography, that he 
would "make a perfect pendant", Andre having 
been Deputy Adjutant General in the British army. 
The arrest was made at the instigation of Benjamin 
Thompson, afterwards Count Rumford. 



274 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

The news of this arrest probably reached Gov- 
ernor Trumbull in the following January, 1781. 
Although the proceeding was in direct violation 
of the proclamation made by his Majesty's Com- 
missioners in America in 1778, there was much cause 
for anxiety as well as indignation. For nearly 
seven months Colonel Trumbull was imprisoned; 
and it was only after repeated efforts on the part 
of Benjamin West, Sir Joshua Reynolds, Charles 
James Fox, Edmund Burke, and others of equal 
or greater influence, that he was at last released. 
An appeal to law was out of the question, owing to 
the suspension of the habeas corpus act; and thus 
the indignity of imprisonment had to be borne for 
this long time as best he could bear it. From cer- 
tain indications of his pride and force of character 
in other instances we may well imagine that he 
chafed under the treatment, though he continued 
to pursue his studies in art with unabated zeal. 
From letters of Messrs. John de Neufville and 
Sons of Amsterdam, his father seems to have re- 
ceived the fullest particulars regarding his im- 
prisonment and the prospects of his release. It 
was not, however, an unconditional release when it 
came, for it carried with it the condition that he 
should depart from Great Britain within thirty 
days, and should not return until peace should be 
declared. Benjamin West and John Singleton Copley 
became his sureties in a bond for two hundred 
pounds for carrying out this condition. He was 
thus enabled to go at once to Amsterdam, where 
under the auspices of the friendly mercantile house 



RETURN OF JOHN TRUMBULL 275 

of John de Neufville and Son he endeavored to 
assist his father in negotiating a loan of £200,000 
for the State of Connecticut. From this place long 
letters to his father give interesting accounts of 
the political situation in Holland, and show quite 
plainly that the time was unfavorable for effecting 
a loan. John Adams happened to be in Amster- 
dam at the time, and from him Colonel Trumbull 
learned that he had met with no success in nego- 
tiating a loan for the United States, and believed 
it useless to make any further attempts in Holland. 
Following his example. Colonel Trumbull gave up 
the attempt, and soon embarked for his native 
land, which he reached in January, 1782, after a 
narrow escape from shipwreck, reimbarking at 
Bilboa. 

Thus the Governor had the disappointment of 
learning that the attempt which the General As- 
sembly had authorized him to make for a foreign 
loan of £200,000 was unsuccessful and impossible; 
and that the injustice done to his son had seriously 
affected the young man's progress in the pursuit 
of his chosen profession. A severe illness followed 
after his arrival at his home in Lebanon, after re- 
covering from which the necessities of the case 
obliged him to join his brother in supervising con- 
tracts for the commissary department of the army. 
After peace was declared he again took up his life 
work as an artist, the decision being reached after 
a consultation with his father which he describes 
as follows : 

*'My father again urged the law, as a profession 



276 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

which in a repubHc leads to all emolument and dis- 
tinction, and for which my early education had 
well prepared me. My reply was, that so far as I 
understood the question, law was rendered neces- 
sary by the vices of mankind — that I had already 
seen too much of them, willingly to devote my life 
to a profession which would keep me perpetually 
involved, either in the defense of innocence against 
fraud and injustice, or (what was much more revolt- 
ing to an ingenuous mind) to the protection of 
guilt against just and merited punishment. In short, 
I pined for the arts, and entered into an elaborate 
defense of my predilection, and again dwelt upon 
the honors paid to artists in the glorious days of 
Greece and Athens. My father listened patiently, 
and when I had finished, he complimented me on 
the able manner in which I had defended what to 
him still appeared to be a bad cause. 'I had con- 
firmed his opinion,' he said, that with proper study 
I should make a respectable lawyer; 'but,' added 
he, 'you must give me leave to say that you appear 
to have overlooked, or forgotten, one important 
point in your case.' 'Pray sir,' I rejoined, 'what was 
that.?' 'You appear to forget, sir, that Connecticut 
is 7iot Athens'; and with this pithy remark, he 
bowed and withdrew, and never more opened his 
lips on the subject." 

Among the urgent letters' sent by Washington 
during the first half of the year 1781 is a letter of the 
tenth of May in which he says: 

"From the post of Saratoga to that of Dobbs' 
Ferry inclusive I believe there is not (by the returns 



WETHERSFIELD CONFERENCE 277 

and reports made to me) at this moment one day's 
supply of meat for the army on hand. . . . 

"I have now only to repeat the alternative which 
has been so often urged, that supplies, particularly 
of beef cattle, must be speedily and regularly pro- 
vided, or our posts cannot be maintained, nor the 
army kept in the field much longer." 

Two weeks after this alarming letter the famous 
Wethersfield conference is held. The plan of cam- 
paign agreed upon at the house of Joseph Webb in 
Wethersfield makes this probably the most im- 
portant conference held during the war. It appears 
to have been entirely a military conference, in 
which Washington and Rochambeau were respec- 
tively the American and French leaders, conferring 
with Generals Knox and Duportail and the Marquis 
de Chastellux. 

Washington at once writes Trumbull, telling the 
result of this conference, which was at the time 
solely a plan for the reduction and occupation of 
New York, where the British forces were then 
weakened by sending much needed reinforcements 
to the south to retrieve, if possible, the losses oc- 
casioned by the superb generalship of Greene. 
Even Washington, conscious as he was of Greene's 
military genius, could not foresee the far-reaching 
results of the campaign which that great general 
was so brilliantly and successfully conducting. 

The plan of the Wethersfield conference called 
urgently for men from Connecticut to be in the 
field by the first of July, in order to cooperate with 
the French troops in the taking of New York, 



278 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

before the possible return of the British from the 
south, which return did not take place, since Greene 
kept them actively employed. By the ninth of 
July we find Governor Trumbull at Lebanon, from 
which place he writes Washington: 

"... I intend to remain at home till the troops 
are forwarded from hence, then to remove to Hart- 
ford to promote the hastening on the fresh beef and 
other supplies; and should it appear necessary and 
expedient, shall remove further westward with an 
Executive Council about me to promote every- 
thing needful that is in our power. My great object 
is to forward our troops, and by the most strenuous 
exertions to feed the army that they be not reduced 
to any disagreeable necessities." 

In order to be nearer to the scene of military 
operations, and to expedite the payment of the 
soldiers, Governor Trumbull in the following month 
of August set out for Danbury, thus carrying out a 
plan already suggested by Washington of holding 
the meetings of his Council near the scene of action, 
and encouraging the troops by his presence, and 
by the welcome payment of a portion, at least, of 
their much needed wages. According to the meager 
entries in the Governor's diary at this time, we 
learn that his sojourn at Danbury partook of the 
nature of a military encampment. Guards were 
set at night, owing, no doubt, to threats of personal 
violence to the Governor, which he himself records 
in his diary in the following words : 

"At Newtown one said he would kill me as quick 
as he would a Rattle Snake." 



SUCCESSES IN THE SOUTH 279 

The sudden change of plan in miUtary opera- 
tions prevented a visit of the Governor to Washing- 
ton at headquarters, in acceptance of an invitation 
from the latter before the arrival of the Gov- 
ernor and his Council at Danbury. The stay at 
this place occupied about a fortnight in the month 
of August, during which time the plan of the great 
and glorious Yorktown campaign developed. On 
the twenty-second of August a circular letter was 
issued by Washington disclosing to the various 
governors of the eastern States the plan of campaign, 
and urging that the quotas of these States be im- 
mediately filled to reinforce General Heath, who 
had been left in command of the forces before New 
York. 

The gloom with which the year opened was soon 
to be transformed to brilliancy through the com- 
bined efforts of the two great generals, Washington 
and Greene; for on the very day when Washington 
was issuing the circular letter just referred to, 
Greene had begun the march which resulted in the 
battle of Eutaw Springs, the effect of which was 
to keep the British cooped up in Charleston to the 
end of the war. Long before this, the slow means of 
communication had brought the news of the glorious 
victory of January seventeenth at Cowpens, of March 
fifteenth at Guilford Court House, and of the evacua- 
tion of Camden by the British on the tenth of 
May. It is not to be supposed that these victories, 
important as they were, could be fully appreciated 
in distant New England at the time. Cheering 
though the news may have been, it formed only 



28o JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

a slight relief to the gloom in which New England 
was shrouded. 

On the twenty-second of August, as we have 
seen, the Yorktown campaign had been fully planned, 
and the "old continentals in their ragged regi- 
mentals" were joining with the gorgeously uni- 
formed French troops in the swift and brilliant 
march towards Yorktown, the result of which was 
to end, two years later, the long, weary struggle of 
eight years. So swift and so boldly and brilliantly 
planned was this movement that Sir Henry Clinton 
was entirely hoodwinked, and did not open his eyes 
to the situation until it was far too late to attempt to 
intercept Washington. Racking his brains to plan 
a counter-movement of some kind, he decided upon 
an attack on the Connecticut coast, though even 
he must have known that such a movement could 
not possibly divert Washington from the plan of the 
Yorktown campaign, which had already progressed 
farther and more successfully than Clinton himself 
was aware of in those days of slow communication. 

In pursuance of his plan, Clinton placed under 
command of the traitor Arnold an expedition des- 
tined for New London, whose spacious harbor was 
defended by a small battery on the New London 
side known as Fort Trumbull, and a much more 
formidable fort on the Groton side known as Fort 
Griswold. The garrison of the New London battery, 
consisting of twenty-three men, after firing a broad- 
side at Arnold's forces, spiked their guns, and re- 
treated in boats across the harbor to reinforce the 
small garrison of Fort Griswold. Against this fort 



THE GROrON MASSACRE 281 

a body of some eight hundred of the British, hav- 
ing landed on the Groton side of the harbor, marched 
with the expectation of an easy victory. 

After passing Fort Trumbull, Arnold proceeded 
with about one thousand men to the more thickly 
settled portion of New London, where about one 
hundred and twenty-five buildings were quickly 
reduced to ashes. At Fort Griswold, on the opposite 
side, about one hundred and fifty determined men 
had gathered. Unconditional surrender was de- 
manded by the British commander. Colonel Eyre, 
accompanied by the threat that if this demand was 
not complied with, "martial law" would be put in 
force, meaning that no quarter would be given to 
the survivors after the fort was taken. To this 
Colonel William Ledyard sent the prompt reply, 
"We will not surrender, let the consequences be 
what they may." The British, to the number of 
eight hundred or more, immediately advanced to 
take the fort by storm, but were met by a brave 
and stubborn resistance on the part of the hundred 
and fifty men who had hastily gathered for the 
defense, and who held the fort for nearly an hour, 
inflicting severe losses upon the enemy. At last 
a breach was made, and the British came pouring 
in on the east side of the fort. Colonel Ledyard, 
seeing that further resistance was useless, ordered 
his men to lay down their arms. On presenting 
his own sword as a token of surrender to the British 
officer supposed to be in command, the brute seized 
the weapon and plunged it in the breast of the brave 
Ledyard. This appeared to be a signal for indis- 



282 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

criminate butchery of the defenseless men who had 
laid down their arms. Of this brave little band but 
eight or ten escaped unhurt. 

After burning the village of Groton, the British 
hastily took to their ships, as the militia began to 
gather from adjoining and near-by towns. An 
official return shows that they reembarked with 
two hundred and twenty men killed, wounded or 
missing, a loss caused by one hundred and fifty 
determined defenders of Fort Griswold. 

Comment on this brutal massacre seems hardly 
necessary. It is doubtless true that the survival 
of a medieval custom still made it a part of the code 
of European warfare that no quarter should be 
given to the garrison of a captured stronghold; 
and it is true that the British commander had 
warned the Americans that this custom would be 
enforced. The code had, however, always been 
"honored in the breach" by the Americans, as 
in the case of Stony Point, and both European and 
American civilization were, or should have been, 
far beyond observing it. It cannot fail to stand as 
a blot on the record of British warfare in the Revolu- 
tion which has hardly a parallel in the history of 
the war. 

At the time of this massacre Governor Trumbull 
was at Hartford, where he received the news. He 
promptly ordered General Spencer to the scene 
with such troops as could be mustered, and 
sent at once to General Heath at headquarters to 
obtain such detailed information of the affair as 
could be procured. This information he at once 



SURRENDER OF CORNWALLIS 283 

communicated to General Washington. He cor- 
responded with Governor Greene of Rhode Island, 
urging cooperation to resist further attacks of the 
enemy on the shores of the two States. Measures 
were also taken for the relief of the inhabitants of 
Groton and New London, many of whom had lost 
all they possessed. The condition of many widowed 
mothers and fatherless children called for speedier 
help than the slow movements of the General 
Assembly could give, and a "brief" was issued for 
charitable donations to relieve their immediate 
wants. Governor Trumbull also applied to Wash- 
ington for a detachment of the French fleet to 
protect the coast of Connecticut, but the application 
came too late, as the fleet had left the country. 

During these anxious days cheering news was 
reaching the Governor through letters from his son 
Jonathan, who was at this time at Yorktown in 
the capacity of secretary to General Washington. 
He had been appointed to this position on the 
sixteenth of the previous April, succeeding Colonel 
Robert Hanson Harrison, who had served in that 
capacity since 1776.^ The letters of the son to his 
father report in some detail the operations in prog- 
ress at Yorktown from the twenty-third of Sep- 
tember to the nineteenth of October, the day after 
the final surrender of Cornwallis. This glorious 
news was the culmination of many cheering re- 
ports from the younger Jonathan, in which he men- 

1 Stuart's statement that he succeeded Alexander Hamilton appears to be 
incorrect. See Letter of Washington appointing Trumbull, April i6, Sparks, 
8,14. 



284 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

tions also Greene's brilliant victories at the south. 
In the meager diary of the Governor in which during 
his busy days he briefly jots down leading events, 
we read: 

"Friday, October 26th. About 7 o'clo. in the 
eveg rec^ the hand Bill from D. Govr Bower, of the 
surrender of Ld Cornwallis & his army — 9000 
men, seamen included — quantity of Warlike Stores 
— one 40 gun ship — i frigate — about one hundred 
Transports. Praised be the Lord of Hosts ! '* 



CHAPTER XXV 

NEED OF CONTINUED WAR-FOOTING — DEANE's VIEWS 

— MEASURES FOR DEFENSE PLOTS AGAINST THE 

GOVERNOR — HIS VINDICATION FINAL DECISION OF 

THE SUSQUEHANNA CASE SUBSEQUENT EVENTS IN 

WYOMING 

THE rejoicing of the Governor which has 
just been quoted from his diary is unique 
as an entry in that very sHght journal 
which he was doubtless too busy to make more 
elaborate. To Washington he wrote, sending his 
warmest congratulations, speaking of the victory 
at Yorktown as "an event which cannot fail to 
strengthen the impressions of European powers in 
favor of the great and good cause, in which you 
have so long and successfully contended, and go far 
to convince the haughty King of Great Britain, 
that it is in vain to persevere in his cruel and in- 
famous purpose of enslaving a people, who can boast 
of Generals and armies that neither fear to meet 
his veterans in the high places of the field, or pursue 
them to the strongholds of security, and for whose 
help the arm of the Almighty has been made bare, 
and his salvation rendered gloriously conspicuous; 

— an event which will hasten the wished-for happy 
period, when your Excellency may retire to and 
securely possess the sweets of domestic felicity and 

28s 



286 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

glorious rest from the toils of war, surrounded by 
the universal applause of a free, grateful and happy 
people." 

To these sentiments Washington replied under 
date of the twenty-eighth of November : 

"I most earnestly hope that this event may be 
productive of all those happy consequences which 
your Excellency mentions; and I think that its 
good effects cannot fail to be very extensive, unless 
from a mistaken idea of the magnitude of this 
success unhappily a spirit of remissness should 
seize the minds of the States, and they should 
set themselves down in quiet with a delusive 
hope of the contest being brought to a close. I hope 
this may not be the case. To prevent so great 
an evil shall be the study of my winter's endeavor; 
and I cannot but flatter myself that the States, 
instead of relaxing in their exertions, will be 
stimulated to the most vigorous preparations for 
another active, glorious, and decisive campaign, 
which if properly prosecuted will, I trust, under 
the smiles of Heaven, bring us to the end of this 
long and tedious war, and sit us down in the 
full security of the great object of our toils, — 
the complete establishment of peace, liberty, and 
independence." 

To Rochambeau Governor Trumbull also wrote, 
expressing his gratitude for the assistance which 
France had rendered in achieving this glorious vic- 
tory. This letter was promptly acknowledged, 
with expressions of high esteem. 

Quite different was a correspondence with Silas 



THE REPLY TO DEANE 287 

Deane into which the Governor found himself 
obHged to enter, owing to Deane's request that his 
views should be submitted to the General Assembly 
of Connecticut. The long letter which he wrote in 
explanation of these views was dated at Ghent 
on the twenty-first of October. Briefly stated, it 
was the presentation of arguments for the United 
States to make peace with Great Britain, regardless 
of the treaty of alliance with France, which nation 
Deane believed to be gaining a position in which she 
could oppress us more grievously than the Mother 
Country ever had done or would do. This letter 
came at a most inopportune time for accomplishing 
its purpose. When it reached its destination the 
country was rejoicing over the surrender of Corn- 
wallis, and was filled with gratitude to our French 
allies for making that surrender possible. Governor 
Trumbull's reply, temperate yet decisive in tone, 
was unanimously adopted by both houses of the 
General Assembly, and duly forwarded to Deane, 
who was regarded with suspicion at the time. Reply- 
ing to his suggestions of disregarding the treaty 
with France, and stopping the burdensome expen- 
ditures of our country by bringing the war to a 
close through negotiations with Great Britain, the 
Governor says: 

"No, I will sooner consent to load myself, my 
constituents, my posterity with a debt equal to the 
whole property of the country than consent to a 
measure so detestably infamous, and I doubt not 
but my countrymen in general will choose with me 
to preserve their liberties with the reputation and 



288 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

consciousness of preserving virtue, even tho' poverty 
be the consequence." ^ 

With the views of Washington to keep up the 
army until peace should be definitely determined, 
Governor Trumbull fully agreed, and exerted him- 
self, as he had in the darkest days, to bring up the 
quota of Connecticut to its maximum. It appears 
by the records of the January session of 1782 that 
the quota was reported to the General Assembly as 
filled, and that measures were taken for the defense 
of the Connecticut coast and the towns bordering 
on New York. 

During the two previous years, Trumbull had 
experienced a taste of the ingratitude of a budding 
republic by failing to receive a majority of the 
votes of the people. In 1780 the popular vote was 
3598 in his favor and 3668 in favor of other candi- 
dates. The General Assembly, as provided by law, 
promptly elected him Governor by a vote of 107 in 
his favor to nine against him. In the following year, 
the vote of the General Assembly is thus recorded: 
Trumbull, 104; William Pitkin, 7; Oliver Wolcott, 
5; Samuel Huntington, 5; Richard Law, i. 

If the newspapers of the day had been in the 
habit of discussing the political situations and 
tactics of State campaigns as they do at the present 
time, we should doubtless be able to explain fully 
the opposition to Governor Trumbull's reelection 

1 Although this letter was generally approved by members of Congress and 
by Washington, it was later hoped that no answer would be sent to Deane, 
as silence would appear more dignified and afford less opportunity for miscon- 
struction. Massachusetts Historical Society Collections, 7th series, vol. 3, p. 
365- 



REELECTION OPPOSED 289 

and the methods and arguments of this opposition. 
The small weekly newspapers of the day are pro- 
vokingly silent on this subject, so that the almost 
secret political methods employed lack the descrip- 
tion and explanation which would be most satis- 
factory in the present instance. But if there were 
no "yellow journals" to malign him publicly, the 
tavern-haunters and tavern scandal-mongers an- 
swered this purpose in his time as effectively as the 
"yellow journals" serve similar purposes in the 
present time. 

The schemes for removing Trumbull from the 
governorship of Connecticut were believed, at the 
time, to be the work of the enemy. The lies which 
were circulated regarding him were mainly in con- 
nection with that same illicit trade with the enemy 
which he, of all men, had done everything in his 
power to punish and prevent. There can be no 
doubt, too, that his steadfast and unwearied at- 
tempts to provide for the needs of the army, and 
his policy of meeting the heavy and burdensome 
expenses of his State by taxation had caused criti- 
cisms at least, from those who felt the burden most 
keenly. Then, too, the aspirations of other candi- 
dates for an office which Trumbull had held for 
thirteen years doubtless had something to do with 
the opposition which had developed. Thus, from 
a position where, after overcoming the early opposi- 
tion to his candidacy, he had so established himself 
in the hearts of the freemen of Connecticut that it 
became "a rare thing to see a counting of votes" * 

1 Hartford Courant, April 2, 1782. 



290 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

for Governor, we find him, at the advanced age of 
seventy-three, the victim of slander and of jealousy 
and political ferment as a reward for his tireless, 
single-hearted, patriotic services. 

Legitimate, outspoken opposition, if it existed, 
was something he was ready and willing to meet 
with his usual candor and calmness; but the methods 
of the slanderer and traducer were so galling to 
him that he at last took measures to expose them 
to the light of day. Among these methods were the 
exposing in public in New York of cases of goods, 
supposed to contain articles of illicit trade, plainly 
marked with his name, . . . "and they have been 
frequently seen to send them on board vessels 
bound eastward, in so much that our officers in 
captivity among them have been induced to believe 
his Excellency was actually concerned, and many 
were not undeceived, till they were exchanged, and 
came out, and enquired into the truth of the matter."^ 

Proceedings of this kind were supplemented by 
the appearance of a ''stranger from Middletown " 
at Enfield, where, in a tavern, in the presence of a 
number of people, he made the statement that "a 
vessel which belonged to his Excellency the Gover- 
nor, and which was employed in carrying on illicit 
trade, had lately been taken coming from the enemy 
loaded with goods, and that she was brought into 
one of the ports of Connecticut for condemnation." ^ 
The story of course spread and grew as such stories 
will, and at last reached the notice of the Governor 

1 Hartford Courant, April 2, 1783. 

^ Stuart, "Life of Trumbull", p. 566. 



'i i' 



PLOT AGAINST TRUMBULL 291 

himself, through a correspondent. He lost no time 
in addressing the General Assembly on the subject, 
under date of January 29, 1782. It seems necessary 
to quote this address in full, as showing his attitude: 
"To the Honorable General Assembly now sitting: 
"A member of the honorable House of Repre- 
sentatives handed to me a letter of the 2i«* inst, 
which is herewith offered for your Observation, 
and opens the occasion of this address. 

** Perhaps no person in the United States was 
earlier apprised than myself of the origin and in- 
sidious design of our enemies to set on foot and 
carry on a trade and commerce with this and the 
other States for the manufactures and merchandise 
of their country, or more deeply sensible of its 
dangerous and pernicious effects — and I am per- 
suaded that no one has been or could be more active 
and vigilant to prevent the execution of that en- 
snaring and ruinous project; and during my ad- 
ministration my whole time has been devoted to 
and intent upon the Salvation of my Country, and 
the defence of its inestimable rights against the open 
force and more dangerous secret fraud of our im- 
placable and restless enemy. My character and 
conduct in these respects, I am happy to believe, 
meets the approbation of all the true Friends in this 
State in proportion to their knowledge and ac- 
quaintance with them, and are not unknown through- 
out all these States, and in Europe. Pardon me. 
Gentlemen, I am far from boasting; I have not 
done more, but less than my duty, and it is my 
highest temporal wish to do much more good to 



292 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

my State and Country, and to see its Liberty and 
Independence established on a firm and immovable 
basis. 

"But who can stand against the secret and malig- 
nant whispers of envy and falsehood, which like 
the pestilence walk in darkness? My Character is 
dearer to me than all worldly instruments, or the 
remains of a life so far spent and exhausted in the 
service of my country. For several years past, 
accumulated and increasing slanders, similar to the 
present, have been whispered and directly spread 
and propagated concerning me by the radical 
Enemies of our Country's cause, by deceived or 
malicious persons, or all, as I must believe. Con- 
scious innocence and integrity have enabled me 
calmly to bear them; — and in my circumstances 
I have not thought it prudent to seek a legal re- 
dress, although in some instances, I could easily 
have traced the Slanders to their Authors — and 
my neglecting to seek such redress has to my knowl- 
edge been construed as an acknowledgment of 
Guilt. If indeed I am guilty or have any connec- 
tions with a conduct so contrary to the Laws and 
interests of my Country, and which I profess from 
my heart to detest and abhor, is it not high time it 
was known, and for me to be spurned from your 
confidence and trust .f' The author of the present 
report may be brought to your View — the way is 
open for it. 

*' Permit me to ask, if I am and have been thus 
guilty, whether your honor, wisdom, and integrity, 
or all are not also affected, while by your suffrages 



HIS VINDICATION 293 

I hold a station too important for even a suspected 
person to fill — whether under all the circumstances, 
it may not become the honor and dignity of this 
Virtuous Assembly to inquire into and investigate 
the truth or falsehood of the facts alledged, and 
let my guilt, if it appears, be fully exposed? It is 
my wish — but it is cheerfully submitted to the 
Wisdom and justice of the Honorable Assembly 
by their faithful, obedient, humble servant, 

"Jonathan Trumbull. 

"Hartford, January 29th, 1782." 

The General Assembly, in compliance with the 
Governor's wish, at once appointed a committee 
to investigate the matter. This committee con- 
sisted of four members of the Lower House, with 
Oliver Wolcott of the Upper House as chairman. 
After a full investigation they reported "that all 
reports of that kind respecting his Excellency are 
false, slanderous and altogether groundless, and 
that they most probably originate from the Par- 
tisans and Emissaries of the Enemy that are secretly 
among the people, and that those kind of Reports, 
tho' intended to injure his Excellency's private 
character, are designed principally to embarrass 
Government, and sow the seeds of Jealousy and 
Distress in the minds of the people, with a View to 
remove out of the way a Character that is so firmly 
opposed to every Measure that is favorable to the 
enemy. And tho' we have not been able to discover 
the Author of this slanderous Report, we are inclined 
to believe him to be an Emissary of the Enemy.'* 



294 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

In the following election of May, 1782, Governor 
Trumbull was once more chosen by the vote of the 
people. It was, as we shall see, by his own choice, 
the last year but one of his long, arduous and faith- 
ful public service; and his reelection by popular 
vote left him the satisfaction of the most complete 
vindication. 

Although no fighting of any consequence ensued 
after the surrender of Cornwallis, the year after 
that event was one of solicitude, anxiety and con- 
tinued hard work for the Governor and his Council. 
The importance of maintaining a war footing was 
something which it seemed next to impossible to 
impress upon the people. Though the General 
Assembly was informed that the quota of Con- 
necticut was filled, the returns from the army as 
reported by Washington to Trumbull showed, as 
in the cases of other States, a considerable lack of a 
quota in the service. In the meantime rumors of 
negotiations for peace were actively circulated by 
the enemy and eagerly received by the people, to 
such an extent as to create strong suspicions that 
such rumors were intended to prevent enlistments, 
with a view, on the part of the enemy, to new mili- 
tary movements. 

Soon after the adoption of the Articles of Con- 
federation in 1 78 1, Pennsylvania availed herself of 
the provisions of these articles by applying to 
Congress to appoint a court to decide the long 
contested Susquehanna case. Allowing no time for 
Connecticut to send to England for important 
papers applying to this case, as requested by her 



SUSQUEHANNA CASE CLOSED 295 

counsel, Congress granted the request of Pennsyl- 
vania, and appointed commissioners to act in the 
matter. Once more Governor Trumbull had to 
review this case, and to conduct an active corre- 
spondence with the Connecticut delegates regarding 
it; and once more Connecticut called on William 
Samuel Johnson to act as one of the attorneys in 
the case.^ The hearing occupied forty-one days, 
and was held at Trenton, New Jersey, and the 
decision, no reasons for which have ever seen the 
light, was *' unanimous" in denying the claim of 
Connecticut to the Wyoming Valley. 

Of the subsequent legislative proceedings to which 
this very peculiar decision gave rise it is hardly 
necessary to speak in this connection. Conjecture 
alone can suggest how far Governor Trumbull may 
have been informed of the prospect of a grant of 
land in Ohio, which after his death was called the 
Western Reserve, as a tacit compensation for the 
loss of Wyoming. That the decision of the Susque- 
hanna case did not coincide with his views of ju- 
dicial procedure we may still more easily imagine. 

But the hardships and sufferings which Con- 
necticut settlers in the beautiful Wyoming Valley 
experienced were by no means ended by the de- 
cision of the Susquehanna case. Fierce local jealousy 
was engendered among the Pennsylvanians by the 
mere fact that Connecticut Yankees were peaceably 
occupying land which they had a perfect right to 
occupy under the jurisdiction of Pennsylvania. 
This local jealousy led, in the early spring of 1784, 

1 The other attorneys were Eliphalet Dyer and Jesse Root. 



296 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

to brutal outrages on the part of Pennsylvania 
troops which were almost a parallel to the Wyoming 
horror of 1778, or at least to the flight of the Con- 
necticut settlers at that time. 

In March, 1784, after a winter of unusual severity, 
the Wyoming Valley was devastated by floods which 
carried away many of the dwellings and covered 
the fertile fields with gravel. Famine was staring 
the settlers in the face, as their provisions had been 
carried away by the flood. The Pennsylvania 
Legislature was deaf to the petitions of Connecticut 
Yankees for relief; but under pretense of preventing 
contentions between them and the Pennsylvanians, 
sent an armed force in command of Justice Patter- 
son to prevent alleged troubles which did not exist. 
Finding that no disorders calling for military inter- 
ference existed, the brutal and vindictive Patterson 
proceeded to create disorders by allowing his soldiers 
to steal the scanty supplies of the settlers, insult the 
women, and drive the men at the point of the bayonet. 
He also barricaded the roads, and forbade the 
farmers to hunt, fish, or even draw water from their 
own wells. Construing their protests and resistance 
as disorderly, he drove one hundred and fifty families 
from their homes, and ordered them out of the 
country by forsaken and impassable routes. More 
than five hundred men, women and children were 
thus driven into the wilderness, and many of them 
died from exposure and fatigue. 

The authorities at Philadelphia, on learning of 
Patterson's brutal measures, issued orders dismiss- 
ing him and his men. These orders he defied, and 



WrOMING VALLET 297 

continued his hostile measures against settlers who 
had returned under the utterly inadequate pro- 
tection of the sheriff of Northumberland and his 
posse. The substitute sent by the authorities of 
Pennsylvania to fill Patterson's place at a time 
when the settlers were besieging him was a match 
for Patterson in brutality. 

This was General Armstrong, who arrived on the 
scene with four hundred militia. Pledging his faith 
as a soldier and his honor as a gentleman that, if 
the settlers would lay down their arms, Patterson's 
men should also be disarmed, he duped the settlers 
into surrender by his worthless pledge, and marched 
seventy-six of them to jail as prisoners. Fortunately 
that august and somnolent body peculiarly known 
to the government of Pennsylvania as the Council 
of Censors, which met once in seven years, was now 
in session, and with some difficulty settled the 
matter by compelling the Legislature to restore the 
Connecticut settlers to the full possession of their 
property in the valley.^ 

Governor Trumbull lived to learn the full par- 
ticulars of these outrages, and there is no doubt 
that he was more deeply than ever impressed by 
them with the need of concerted action among the 
States, and the mischief of local jealousies. 

1 A full and interesting account of these troubles may be found in Professor 
McMaster's "History of the People of the U.S. from the Revolution to the 
Civil War", vol. i, pp. 211-216. 



CHAPTER XXVI 

peace negotiations a critical period for 

america anti-federalism in connecticut — 

Trumbull's federalism — the society of the 
CINCINNATI — Trumbull's reply to Washington's 

ADDRESS the FAREWELL ADDRESS OF THE GOV- 
ERNOR, AND ITS RECEPTION BY THE GENERAL 

ASSEMBLY 

IF the Atlantic cable could have been In opera- 
tion in 1782 and 1783, it may well be imagined 
that political affairs in the United States might 
have assumed a different aspect. At the same time, 
it may also be imagined that the use which the 
incompetent Continental Congress might have made 
of this same cable would have done more than 
ever to hamper the actions of those wonderfully 
successful and able ambassadors, Jay, Franklin and 
Adams. 

The year found England involved in the most 
intricate of political difficulties at home and polit- 
ical complications abroad. The short-lived ministry 
of Rockingham, followed by the equally short-lived 
but more efficient ministry of Shelburne, sufficed 
to establish terms of peace with the United States, 
which terms were finally ratified by the definite 
treaty of September 3, 1784. During this time, 
in the midst of changing ministries and political 



A CRITICAL PERIOD 299 

turmoil, England had before her the added task of 
making peace with Holland, France and Spain. 

The details of the peace negotiations with his 
own country were most carefully watched by the 
Governor of Connecticut. His satisfaction at the 
final cessation of hostilities on the eighth anni- 
versary of the battle of Lexington may well be 
imagined. The victory for which he had hoped and 
toiled and prayed was now won; the stress and 
strain of war was over, and a new era which he had 
done much to inaugurate was now dawning upon 
his native land. 

The long eighteen months following the surrender 
of Cornwallis had been months of uncertainty and 
anxiety, as we have seen; and that a still more 
critical period in the history of his country was to 
follow, Trumbull could see as plainly as any of the 
men of his time. That sharply defined lines were 
drawn in Connecticut between federalism and State 
rights at and before this time is evident, if only 
from the fact that in the May session of 1782 the 
General Assembly passed an act empowering Con- 
gress to collect duties on imports in the State, pro- 
vided that no part of the money so collected should 
be applied to the half-pay of officers in the army. 

It was upon this question of half-pay that the 
greatest difficulties and dangers of the time began. 
The Governor well knew that the measure had been 
urged by the great Washington five years before, 
as essential for keeping together the remnant of an 
army so nearly wiped out of existence by the terrible 
winter at Valley Forge. In 1780, the General 



300 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

Assembly of Connecticut had instructed the dele- 
gates to Congress to oppose the measure; and their 
correspondence with the Governor shows that such 
opposition accorded with their personal views. ^ 
Though there is nothing on record at this time to 
show the views of the Governor on this question, 
there is no doubt that his subsequent outspoken 
views in favor of union and a strong central govern- 
ment were the result of careful deliberation, and 
opinions well grounded in experience. Such views 
placed him at variance with a large portion of the 
people; so that, at the annual election in May, 
1783, he again lacked a majority of the popular 
vote. So strong, however, was the regard in which 
he was held by the General Assembly that this body 
elected him to the governorship. 

This was to be the last term of his public services; 
and a stormy term it was, in its political aspects. 
Nowhere was the opposition to the granting of half- 
pay for life to retiring officers of the army stronger 
than in Connecticut; and the compromise or sub- 
stitute of commutation, allowing full pay for five 
years, did not in any way help matters. The prej- 
udice against officers of the army grew as the people 
found them accepting the grants of Congress, and 
they were looked upon as a favored class, forming the 
elements of an aristocracy in a democratic country. 
But little was needed to bring this feeling to a white 
heat; and that little soon appeared in the formation 
of the politically harmless and honorably fraternal 

'Letter of Samuel Huntington to Governor Trumbull, October 26, 1780. 
In Massachusetts Historical Society Collection, 7th series, vol. 3, p. 153. 



WASHINGTON'S ADDRESS 301 

society, the Cincinnati. This society, as is well 
known, estabhshed a bond of brotherhood among the 
commissioned officers of the army, with no more 
harmful public influence than providing relief for 
the widows and orphans of such officers. But the 
malcontents, whose name was legion, scented danger 
in this perfectly harmless and honorable society, 
and the alarmists spread the tidings through the 
land that it was a secret organization which en- 
dangered the liberties of the country, and positively 
established an aristocracy with the purpose of 
taking the reins of government. 

If anything could have had the effect of allaying 
the ferment, the masterly address of Washington, 
to the governors of the various States would have 
done this. This address was presented to the 
General Assembly of Connecticut in June, 1783. 
It was met with resolutions expressing high regard 
for the great Commander in Chief, but carefully 
avoiding mention of the political sentiments which 
he expressed in his earnest, statesmanlike endeavor 
to bring about concerted action among the States, 
and loyalty to the needed form of general govern- 
ment. In transmitting this resolve to Washington, 
Governor Trumbull is not satisfied to make it 
merely an official communication, but is evidently 
so impressed with the situation that he is moved to 
add the following personal words: 

"Permit me to address your Excellency on the 
pathetic manner you take leave of myself, and the 
State over which I have the honor to preside; to 
assure you how great pleasure and satisfaction we 



302 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

have enjoyed, in the wisdom, magnanimity, and 
skill shown in forming, disciplining and conducting 
the army of the United States to so glorious an 
event; and also in the patriotic virtue displayed in 
this last address, which exhibits the foundation 
principles so necessary to be freely and fully in- 
culcated, and appear to be the interest of all to 
agree in and pursue, — to maintain and support 
an indissoluble union of the States, under one 
federal head, a sacred regard to public justice, a 
proper peace establishment, and a pacific and 
friendly disposition among the people of the United 
States; to exhibit and maintain a good character 
for wisdom, honesty, firmness and benevolence. 
How pleasing the national prospect! How critical 
the present moments! Moderation, patience, and 
diligence are required to calm the public mind so 
variously agitated by prejudice, passion, and popular 
sinister designs. We have the consolation. That 
the Lord reigns. Tranquillity and happiness will 
be disturbed during the tumult. God grant that 
it may soon subside ! 

"In your retirement, my earnest prayer is that 
every temporal and heavenly blessing may attend 
you. I cannot persuade myself that the calls of the 
country will suffer so exalted a character and benevo- 
lent mind to withdraw from employment for the 
public good; although it is your wish." 

The tumult which the Governor deprecates in 
this letter was at its height at this time, and had 
been brought to its height by the formation of the 
Society of the Cincinnati, with the Governor's son 



SOCIETT OF THE CINCINNATI 303 

Jonathan as a charter member, soon to be followed 
by his brother John. The first name In the list of 
honorary members in this society in Connecticut is 
that of the Governor himself, who was elected to 
that honor on March 17, 1784. The fact that he 
did not bear a Continental commission disqualified 
him for regular membership, but under the rules of 
the order an honorary member was an active life 
member, lacking only the power to transmit his 
membership to his successors. In accepting this 
honorary membership, he showed his sympathy 
with the great Washington, the first President- 
General of the society, and accepted a well-deserved 
honor; as members of this class were only such as 
had distinguished themselves in the service of their 
country. 

There can be no doubt that in accepting this 
honorary membership in the Society of the Cin- 
cinnati, Governor Trumbull placed himself in a 
position in which he stood opposed to a majority 
of the freemen of Connecticut. This, with his pro- 
nounced views in favor of federalism, caused him 
much concern and anxiety for the cause he had done 
so much to save, and made the last year of his long 
term of public service a year which brought but 
little enjoyment of the blessings of peace. 

Governor Trumbull had now reached the age of 
seventy-three. Added to the political turmoil of 
the time was the fact that the treaty of peace brought 
him once more face to face with his indebtedness 
to British merchants; for this treaty validated all 
claims which British subjects might have against 



304 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

people of the United States. In April, 1783, we 
find Governor Trumbull offering to Frazier, Cham- 
pion and Hawley of London payment of their claim 
in money of the United States.^ In view of the 
then depreciated condition of this currency, they 
preferred to retain the security which Trumbull 
had given them before the war. Even at his ad- 
vanced age he appears to hope for some means of 
retrieving his fortune, and with this end in view he 
writes to his friends De Neufville and Sons and 
others regarding the prospects of future business. 

But the long habit of active business and polit- 
ical life, the will to persevere in his activities could 
not prevent him from realizing that the infirmities 
of age had begun to take their hold upon him, and 
the weariness of a long strife had had its effect. 
Impressed at last with his physical disabilities, and 
longing for the rest and retirement which his friend 
the great Washington also craved, he presents to 
the General Assembly at its October session of 
1783 the following farewell address: 

*'To the Honorable the Council and House of 
Representatives in General Court convened, Oct. 

1783- 
"Gentlemen: 

"A few days will bring me to the anniversary of 
my birth; seventy-three years of my life will then 
have been completed; and next May fifty-one years 
will have passed since I was first honored with the 

1 This was doubtless in anticipation of the settlement of his accounts, as 
he had expressed the intention of using the money due him from the State 
to pay his foreign creditors. 



FAREWELL ADDRESS 305 

confidence of the people in a public character. 
During this period, in different capacities, it has 
been my lot to be called to public service, almost 
without interruption. Fourteen years I have had 
the honor to fill the chief seat of government. With 
what carefulness, with what zeal and attention to 
your welfare, I have discharged the duties of my 
several stations, some few of you of equal age with 
myself, can witness for me from the beginning. 
During the latter period, none of you are ignorant 
of the manner in which my public life has been 
occupied. The watchful cares and solicitudes of 
an eight years' distressing and unusual war, have 
also fallen to my share, and have employed many 
anxious moments of my latest time; which have 
been cheerfully devoted to the service of my country. 
Happy am I to find that all these cares, anxieties, 
and solicitudes, are compensated by the noblest 
prospect which now opens to my fellow-citizens, 
of a happy establishment (if we are but wise to 
improve the precious opportunity) in peace, tran- 
quillity, and national independence. With sincere 
and lively gratitude to Almighty God, our Great 
Protector and Deliverer, and with most hearty 
congratulations to all our citizens, I felicitate you, 
gentlemen, the other freemen, and all the good 
people of the State, in this glorious prospect. 

"Impressed with these sentiments of gratitude 
and felicitation — reviewing the long course of 
years in which, through various events, I have had 
the pleasure to serve the State — contemplating, 
with pleasing wonder and satisfaction, at the close 



3o6 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

of an arduous contest, the noble and enlarged 
scenes which now present themselves to my coun- 
try's view — and reflecting at the same time on 
my advanced stage of life — a life worn out almost 
in the constant cares of ofl^ce — I think it my duty 
to retire from the busy concerns of public affairs; 
that at the evening of my days, I may sweeten their 
decline, by devoting myself with less avocation, 
and more attention, to the duties of religion, the 
service of my God, and preparation for a future 
happier state of existence; in which pleasing em- 
ployment, I shall not cease to remember my country, 
and to make it my ardent prayer that heaven will 
not fail to bless her with its choicest favors. 

"At this auspicious moment, therefore, of my 
country's happiness — when she has just reached 
the goal of her wishes, and obtained the object for 
which she has so long contended and so nobly 
struggled, I have to request the favor from you, 
gentlemen, and through you from all the freemen of 
the State, that, after May next, I may be excused 
from any further service in public life, and that, 
from this time, I may no longer be considered as an 
object of your suffrages for any public employment 
in the State. The reasonableness of my request 
will, I am persuaded, be questioned by no one. 
The length of time I have devoted to their service, 
with my declining state of vigor and activity, will, 
I please myself, form for me a sufficient and un- 
failing excuse with my fellow-citizens. 

"At this parting address, you will suffer me, 
gentlemen, to thank you, and all the worthy members 



FAREWELL ADDRESS 307 

of preceding assemblies, with whom I have had the 
honor to act, for all that assistance, counsel, aid, 
and support, which I have ever experienced during 
my administration of government; and in the 
warmth of gratitude to assure you, that, till my 
latest moments, all your kindness to me shall be 
remembered; — and that my constant prayer shall 
be employed with Heaven, to invoke the Divine 
Guidance and protection in your future councils 
and government. 

"Age and experience dictate to me — and the 
zeal with which I have been known to serve the 
public through a long course of years, will, I trust, 
recommend to the attention of the people, some few 
thoughts which I shall offer to their consideration 
on this occasion, as my last advisory legacy. 

"I would in the first place entreat my country- 
men, as they value their own internal welfare, and 
the good of posterity, that they maintain inviolate, 
by a strict adherence to its original principles, 
the happy constitution under which we have so 
long subsisted as a corporation; that for the pur- 
poses of national happiness and glory, they will 
support and strengthen the federal union by every 
constitutional means in their power. The existence 
of a Congress, vested with powers competent to the 
great national purposes for which that body was 
instituted, is essential to our national security, 
establishment, and independence. Whether Con- 
gress is already vested with such powers, is a 
question, worthy, in my opinion, of most serious, 
candid, and dispassionate consideration of this leg- 



3o8 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

islature, and those of all the other confederated 
States. For my own part, I do not hesitate to 
pronounce that, In my opinion, that body is not 
possessed of those powers which are absolutely 
necessary to the best management and direction of 
the general weal, or the fulfilment of our own ex- 
pectations. This defect in our federal constitution 
I have already lamented as the cause of many in- 
conveniences which we have experienced; and un- 
less wisely remedied will, I foresee, be productive 
of evils, disastrous, if not fatal, to our future union 
and confederation. In my idea, a Congress invested 
with full and sufficient authorities, is absolutely 
necessary for the great purposes of our confederate 
union, as our legislature is for the support of our 
internal order, regulation, and government in the 
State. Both bodies should be intrusted with powers 
fully sufficient to answer the designs of their several 
institutions. These powers should be distinct, they 
should be clearly defined, ascertained, and under- 
stood. They should be carefully adhered to, they 
should be watched over with a wakeful and dis- 
tinguished attention of the people. But this watch- 
fulness is far different from that excess of jealousy, 
which, from a mistaken fear of abuse, witholds the 
necessary powers, and denies the means which are 
essential to the end expected. Just as ridiculous is 
this latter disposition, as would be the practice 
of a farmer, who should deprive the laboring man 
of the tools necessary for his business, lest he should 
hurt himself or injure his employer, and yet expects 
his work to be accomplished. This kind of ex- 



FAREWELL ADDRESS 309 

cessive jealousy is, in my view, too prevalent at 
this day; and will, I fear, if not abated, prove a 
principal means of preventing the enjoyment of our 
national independence and glory, in that extent 
and perfection which the aspect of our affairs 
(were we to be so wise,) so pleasingly promises to 
us. My Countrymen! suffer me to ask, who are 
the objects of this jealousy? Who, my fellow 
citizens, are the men we have to fear? Not 
strangers who have no connection with our welfare! 
— no, they are men of your own choice, from among 
ourselves ; — a choice (if we are faithful to our- 
selves,) dictated by the most perfect freedom of elec- 
tion; and that election repeated as often as you 
could wish, or is consistent with the good of the 
people. They are our brethren — acting for them- 
selves as well as for us — and sharers with us in all 
the general burthens and benefits. They are men, 
who from interest, affection, and every social tie, 
have the same attachment to our constitution and 
government as ourselves. Why therefore should we 
fear them with this unreasonable jealousy? In 
our present temper of mind, are we not rather to 
fear ourselves? — to fear the propriety of our own 
elections? — or rather to fear, that from this excess 
of jealousy and mistrust, each are cautious of his 
neighbor's love of power, and fearing lest if he be 
trusted, he would misuse it, we should lose all con- 
fidence and government, and everything lend to 
anarchy and confusion? from whose horrid womb, 
should we plunge into it, will spring a government 
that may justly make us all to tremble. 



3IO JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

"I would also beg, that, for the support of the 
national faith and honor, as well as domestic tran- 
quillity, they would pay the strictest attention to 
all the sacred rules of justice and equity, by a faith- 
ful observance and fulfillment of all public as well 
as private engagements. Public expenses are un- 
avoidable : — and those of the late war, although 
they fall far short of what might have been expected, 
when compared with the magnitude of the object 
for which we contended, the length of the contest, 
with our unprepared situation and peculiarity of 
circumstances, yet could not fail to be great; — 
but great as they may appear to be, when, for the 
defence of our invaluable rights and liberties, the 
support of our government, and our national exis- 
tence, they have been incurred and allowed by 
those to whom, by your own choice, you have 
delegated the power, and assigned the duty, of 
watching over the common weal, and guarding your 
interests, their public engagements are as binding 
on the people, as your own private contracts; and 
are to be discharged with the same good faith and 
punctuality. 

"I most earnestly request my fellow citizens, 
that they revere and practice virtue in all its lovely 
forms — this being the surest and best establish- 
ment of national, as well as private felicity and 
prosperity — That, dismissing as well all local and 
confined prejudices, as unreasonable and excessive 
jealousies and suspicions, they study peace and 
harmony with each other, and with the several 
parts of the confederated Republic — That they 



FAREWELL ADDRESS 311 

pay an orderly and respectful regard to the laws and 
regulations of government ; and that, making a judi- 
cious use of that freedom and frequency of election, 
which is the great security and palladium of their 
rights, they will place confidence in the public officers, 
and submit their public concerns, with cheerfulness 
and readiness, to the decisions and determinations 
of Congress and their own legislatures; whose col- 
lected and united wisdom the people will find to be 
a much more sure dependence than the uncertain 
voice of popular clamor, which most frequently, 
is excited and blown about by the artful and de- 
signing part of the community, to efi'ect particular 
and oftentimes sinister purposes. At such times, the 
steady good sense of the virtuous public, wisely 
exercised in a judicious choice of their representa- 
tives, and a punctual observance of their collected 
counsels, is the surest guide to national interest, 
happiness, and security. 

"Finally, my fellow-citizens, I exhort you to 
love one another: let each one study the good of 
his neighbor and of the community, as his own: — 
hate strifes, contentions, jealousies, envy, avarice, 
and every evil work, and ground yourselves in this 
faithful and sure axiom, that virtue exalteth a na- 
tion, but that sin and evil workings are the de- 
struction of a people. 

"I commend you, gentlemen, and the good people 
of the State, with earnestness and ardor, to the 
blessing, the protection, the counsel and direction of 
the great Counsellor and Director, whose wisdom 
and power is sufficient to establish you as a great 



312 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

and happy people; and wishing you the favour of 
this divine benediction, in my pubHc character — 
I bid you a long — a happy adieu. 

"I am, gentlemen, 
"Your most obedient, humble servant 
" Jon^*^ Trumbull." 
Like the address of Washington to the governors 
of the thirteen States, this farewell address of 
Governor Trumbull was respectfully received. To 
say that it had the effect of pouring oil upon the 
troubled waters of Connecticut politics, however, 
would be to say too much. We may imagine that it 
provoked much discussion, and that probably words 
regarding the political situation, even though they 
were the words of the great Washington, could not 
carry more weight with the people of Connecticut 
than this same address just quoted in full. To 
such men as Roger Sherman, Oliver Ellsworth, 
William Samuel Johnson, Matthew Griswold, the 
Huntingtons and many others among the prom^- 
inent men of the State the arguments and political 
statements of the address were clear. Such men 
were already convinced that Washington and Trum- 
bull were right in their views. But a majority of 
the rank and file, with some prominent leaders, 
clung to the narrower view of the situation which 
had been inbred among them through generation 
after generation of Connecticut conservatism and 
autonomy. Congress had already been driven from 
Philadelphia by a mutinous mob of unpaid soldiers; 
the incendiary address to the army at Newburgh 
had been, by Washington's unfailing tact, turned 



RECEPTION OF ADDRESS 313 

against the intriguers who circulated it; but such 
events carried no lessons with them for the anti- 
federaHst party. Sober second thought after the 
fruitless Middletown convention of the following 
December was needed ; the failure of credit abroad, 
and the demonstrations of the inability of Congress 
to adopt any legislation which could be of any 
effect, — all these bitter experiences were needed, 
together with the gradually growing federalism 
among former anti-federalists in other States, to 
bring the people into full accord with the political 
sentiments so freely expressed in the Governor's 
address. 

In the General Assembly something of an official 
kind had to be done regarding this address. Here 
was a Governor who had safely carried his State 
through this terrible struggle of eight years, whose 
personal character commanded their respect, whose 
advanced age and long, arduous service certainly 
called for recognition. His address is before the 
House, but contains certain political doctrines which 
are not even recognized by the majority as whole- 
some, if bitter medicine, and which are by some 
regarded as poison. The situation is delicate, and 
for that reason the address is referred to that last 
resort of procrastination, — a committee. In due 
time the committee reports, recommending certain 
guarded resolutions, which may possibly be con- 
strued as the adoption of the Governor's political 
views by the General Assembly. To this the Lower 
House objects, and votes to refer the report and 
resolutions to the next General Assembly, to con- 



314 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

vene six months later. To this the Senate dissents. 
A committee of conference of the two Houses finally 
agrees upon amended resolutions, shorn of all 
political character, which resolutions were readily 
passed by both houses, and read as follows: 

"Whereas his Excellency Jonathan Trumbull Es- 
quire, Governor and Commander-in-chief in and 
over the State of Connecticut, has signified in 
an address to the General Assembly, to be communi- 
cated to their constituents, his desire that he might 
not, considering his advanced Age, be considered 
by the freemen of this State as an object of their 
choice at the next general election; as the Governor 
has declared his wish to retire, after the expiration 
of his present appointment, from the cares and 
business of government : 

"Resolved by this Assembly, That they consider 
It as their duty in behalf of their constituents, to 
express in terms of the most sincere gratitude, the 
highest respect for his Excellency Governor Trum- 
bull, for the great and eminent services he has 
rendered this State during his long and prosperous 
administration; more especially for that display 
of wisdom, justice, fortitude and miagnanlmity, 
joined with the most unremitting attention and 
perseverance, which he has manifested during the 
late successful though distressing war; which must 
place the chief magistrate of this State in the rank 
of those great and worthy patriots, who have em- 
inently distinguished themselves as the defenders 
of the rights of mankind. 

"And that this Assembly consider it a most 



REPLY TO THE ADDRESS 315 

gracious dispensation of Divine Providence, that 
a life of so much usefulness has been prolonged to 
such an advanced age, with unimpaired vigor and 
activity of mind. 

"But if the freemen of this State shall think 
proper to comply with his Excellency's request, it 
will be the wish of this Assembly, that his successor 
in office may possess those eminent public and 
private virtues, which gave so much lustre to the 
character of him who has in the most honorable 
manner so long presided over this State. 

"It is further Resolved — That the Secretary 
present to Governor Trumbull an authentic copy 
of this act, as a testimony of the respect and esteem 
of the Legislature of this State. And the Secre- 
tary is further directed, that, as soon as he shall 
be furnished with such copy, he cause the same 
to be printed, together with this act." 

Thus the General Assembly testified to an ap- 
preciation of the Governor's past services, though 
the majority were unwilling to endorse his political 
views. Not so, however, was Washington. A copy 
of the Governor's farewell address was sent him by 
the Governor's son Jonathan, and m.et with the 
following comment from the Father of his Country: 

"I sincerely thank you for the copy of the Address 
of Governor Trumbull to the General Assembly and 
freemen of your State. The sentiments contained 
in it are such as would do honor to a patriot of 
any age or nation; at least they are too coincident 
with my own, not to meet with my warmest appro- 
bation. Be so good as to present my cordial respects 



3i6 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

to the Governor, and let him know that It Is my 
wish, that the mutual friendship and esteem, which 
have been planted and fostered in the tumult of 
public life, may not wither and die in the serenity 
of retirement. Tell him that we should rather amuse 
the evening hours of our life in cultivating the 
tender plants, and bringing them to perfection, 
before they are transplanted to a happier clime." 

But six months now remained before the retire- 
ment of the Governor from public life. During this 
time the political turm.oil began to subside. The 
Middletown convention held one or two sessions 
and adopted resolutions which failed to fulminate 
throughout the State, and inflammatory addresses 
to the freemen which failed to inflame. How much 
of this subsidence of the political turmoil was due 
to the Governor's unflinching stand on political 
matters, it is of course impossible to say; but we 
may safely accord to his influence a good share of 
the brighter political prospect which was then 
beginning to dawn. 



CHAPTER XXVII 

governor griswold elected trumbull in 

private life settlement for eight years' 

services his own retrospect his pursuits 

in private life — honors bestowed upon him 

"brother Jonathan" 

THE May election of 1784 resulted in the 
choice of Matthew Griswold for Gov- 
ernor. He was not elected by vote of the 
freemen,^ owing, no doubt, to the fact that he had so 
openly espoused the political views of Governor 
Trumbull. The views of the General Assembly, 
however, had so materially changed since the fare- 
well address of the Governor six months before that 
Griswold was readily elected by that body. It is 
said that Governor Trumbull had been strongly 
urged to continue as a candidate for the position he 
had so long held; but however this may be, he 
remained firm in his determination to retire from 
public life. 

On the twenty-first of May he retired to his home 
in Lebanon. He had listened to the customary 
election sermon, delivered on this impressive oc- 
casion by the Reverend Doctor Joseph Huntington 
of Coventry. He had received from the General 

^ The popular vote was declared, Griswold 2192, Pitkin 1698, Huntington 
1 177, Oliver Wolcott, 1053, scattering 742. Diary of Ezra Stiles, vol. 3, p. 
120. 

317 



3i8 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

Assembly a brief but appropriate parting tribute, 
his reply to which his biographer, Stuart, is good 
enough to supply from his own vivid imagination ; ^ 
and as a crowning gratification had seen on the 
twentieth of May an act passed by the General 
Assembly, by a large majority, unconditionally 
favoring the collection by Congress of duties or 
"imposts" on imported goods. This measure was 
a tacit consent to the half-pay and commutation 
acts of that body, and thus showed that the retiring 
Governor had only been a little in advance of his 
day in advocating such legislation,^ or, at least, the 
keeping the contract which such legislation involved. 
The retiring Governor had now an opportunity 
to look into his own affairs and condition. For 
eight years he had given up all attempts to engage 
in business, having previously resigned the various 
positions as judge and magistrate which he held 
when first elected to the governorship, and having 
devoted himself exclusively to the arduous duties 
of that office. We have seen, from intimations in 
his farewell address, that he felt conscious that 
the infirmities of age were beginning to affect him, 
and that but a very few years at most would bring 
his earthly pilgrimage to its end. It was a time, at 
last, to set his house in order. Added to his con- 
sciousness of the infirmities of age was the con- 
sciousness that his financial affairs were at their 
lowest ebb. His salary as Governor had been regu- 
larly voted by the General Assembly, but we learn 

1 Life of Trumbull, p. 650. 
* See ante, p. 299. 



PERSONAL ACCOUNTS 319 

from a letter which he wrote on April 29, 1785, to 
his son John that he had "received but two half 
years' salaries since the beginning of our contest 
with Great Britain." 

In presenting his accounts to the General As- 
sembly he says that rather than to have called 
upon the State even for his pittance of £300 per 
year during the exigencies of war he would have lost 
the amount "forever." It is difficult to discover 
just what his means of subsistence were during those 
trying times; but as the Governor's share in naval 
prize money was quite liberal, though not so much 
as at previous times, we must imagine that from 
this source added to the meager product of the 
farm, he eked out his humble, unostentatious liveli- 
hood. 

His claim upon the State for his salary, dis- 
bursements and extra services in the Susquehanna 
case and other matters was readily allowed, amount- 
ing to three thousand and sixteen pounds, eleven 
shillings and fourpence, and was liquidated by 
three notes bearing interest and redeemable re- 
spectively in five, six and seven years. Thus was 
a bankrupt Governor paid by a bankrupt State in 
the times when both had exhausted their resources 
in a righteous and at last successful cause. 

With this settlement of his accounts with his 
State, Governor Trumbull's public record ends. 
It was a year after his retirement from office that the 
allowance of his accounts was passed by vote of 
the General Assembly; so that, at the time, he 
was nearing the completion of the seventy-fifth 



320 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

year of his life. More than a year before this time 
he had written to his friend Washington, doubtless 
in recognition of the message already quoted which 
the latter had sent him through his son Jonathan: 

"I felcitate you, Sir, with great cordiality, on 
your having already reached the goal of your wishes, 
and most devoutly invoke the Divine benediction 
on your enjoyments and pursuits. A month more, 
I trust, will bring me to the haven of retirement; 
in the tranquillity of which I hope to have leisure 
to attend to and cultivate those seeds of private 
friendship, which have been planted during the 
tumults of war, and in the cultivation of which I 
promise myself to reap much pleasure. 

"Indulging in these prospects, I am induced 
to wish, and even to hope, that the correspondence 
between you and me, which commenced under 
the pressure of disagreeable circumstances, may 
not wholly cease when we find ourselves in a happier 
situation. Although enveloped in the shades of 
retirement, the busy mind cannot suppress its 
activity, but will be seeking some employment, 
which will indeed be necessary to dispel the langour 
which a scene of inactivity would be apt to produce. 
Subjects will not be wanting; far different, and 
more agreeable, I trust, than those we have been 
accustomed to dwell upon; and occasions may 
present which will serve to beguile a lingering hour, 
and afford some pleasing amusement, or instruc- 
tive information. Let not the disparity of age, or 
the idea of a correspondent seventy-three years 
advanced on his journey through life, chill your 



LETTER FROM WASHINGTON 321 

expectations from this proposal. I promise you 
my best endeavors, and when you perceive, as 
too soon, alas! you may, that your returns are not 
proportional to your disbursements, you have only 
to cease your correspondence; I shall submit." 

To this Washington replies under date of May 
fifteenth : 

**It was with great pleasure and thankfulness I 
received a recognisance of your friendship, in your 
letter of the 20th of last month. 

"It is indeed a pleasure, from the walks of private 
life to view in retrospect all the meanderings of our 
past labors, the difficulties through which we have 
waded, and the happy haven to which the ship 
has been brought. Is it possible, after this, that 
it should founder.? Will not the All-wise and All- 
powerful Director of human events preserve it.^* 
I think he will. He may, however, (for som.e wise 
purpose of his own,) suffer our indiscretions and 
folly to place our national character low in the 
political scale, and this, unless more wisdom and 
less prejudice take the lead in our government, will 
most certainly happen. 

"Believe me, my dear Sir, there is no disparity 
in our ways of thinking and acting, though there 
may happen to be a little in the years we have 
lived, which places the advantage of the corre- 
spondence on my side, as I shall profit by your 
experience and observations; and that no corre- 
spondence can be more pleasing to me than that 
which originates from similar sentiments and similar 
conduct through (though not a long war, the im- 



322 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

portance of it and attainments considered,) a pain- 
ful contest. I pray you, therefore, to continue me 
among the number of your friends, and to favor me 
with such observations and sentiments as may 
occur." 

How far this intention of exchanging friendly 
letters was carried out, it is impossible to say. 
From the published letters of Washington we learn 
that he unexpectedly found himself flooded with 
correspondence and with callers at about this time 
to such an extent that it seriously affected his 
personal affairs, and even threatened his health. 
Governor Trumbull, too, was occupied very fully 
with his own personal affairs for more than a year 
after the correspondence just quoted. It seems 
doubtful, therefore, if there was much opportunity 
for such active personal correspondence as these 
two patriots had promised themselves. If any 
letters were exchanged, they were not of an official 
character, and for that reason would not have been as 
carefully preserved as the mass of official letters 
during the war. However this may be, the letter 
of Governor Trumbull and the reply of Washington 
just quoted give as good indication of the regard 
in which they held one another as any number of 
personal letters could give. 

The settlement with the State having been effected, 
as we have seen, the ex-Governor had, of course, 
more time to devoted to his private affairs and to 
his favorite pursuits. He had time, too, which had 
not till then been granted him, to take an old man's 
retrospect of the scenes through which he had 



PERSONAL AFFAIRS 323 

passed, and of the busy, useful life which was now 
fast drawing to a close. From his memorial to the 
General Assembly in presenting his accounts, we 
find that he alludes to his personal experiences and 
sacrifices for the first time; "to the busy and dis- 
tressing scenes which followed for a succession of 
about eight years, the burden of which, in this 
State, in a peculiar manner fell and centered on 
him — a period during which, at home or abroad, 
he had scarcely time to eat his necessary food — 
and many sleepless nights — to the singularly ob- 
noxious light in which he stood with the enemy — 
to the price that was set upon his head — and add 
to these the large expenses of attending, besides the 
stated, fourteen special assemblies — and other ex- 
penses abroad. But it is impossible, without the 
experience, for anyone to realize or form an ade- 
quate idea of the multiplicity, weight and burden 
which lay upon him during that trying scene." ^ 

This statement, it should be remembered, is 
in support of — almost in apology for — claims for 
extra services, which it was customary for the 
General Assembly to allow the Governor, as shown 
by precedents which he cites, in which more liberal 
allowance had been made than he claims in this 
instance. 

The statement that a price had been set on his 
head comes in the form of documentary evidence 
for the first time in this memorial. We know him 

^ This extract is from a manuscript copy of the memorial which is not in 
Governor Trumbull's handwriting, and may possibly differ in phraseology 
from the original. 



324 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

well enough to know that he would not make such 
a statement except upon good authority. Tradi- 
tion tells of a visit made by a stranger, whose ap- 
pearance was suspicious, at the Governor's house 
at Lebanon at a time when he was ill and in bed. 
This stranger so persistently demanded an inter- 
view with the Governor that his housekeeper, Mrs. 
Hyde, at last armed herself with shovel and tongs, 
and drove the intruder from the house, doubtless 
giving, at the same time, an alarm to the neigh- 
borhood which made Lebanon too hot to hold him. 
In the early days of the war, too. Governor Trum_- 
buU was known in England as the "rebel governor", 
all the other governors being loyalists. It is quite 
probable, too, that the article in the Political A^ag- 
azine of London, which has been attributed to the 
Reverend Samuel Peters, was written in full knowl- 
edge that it might serve the turn of som.e enter- 
prising enemy who aspired to reap the reward which 
was set on the Governor's head. For that reason 
the personal description which it gives is m.ore 
reliable than the majority of the statem.ents of 
Peters. 

It seems that the Governor's expectations of a 
retired life were but partially fulfilled during the 
year 1784, for on February 15, 1785, we find him 
writing to Lane, Son and Fraser of London : 

"It is my intention to put over my aff^airs of 
business in a Trading way into the Hands of rry 
two sons as soon as I can, and live, myself, in a 
manner freer from Encumbrances than I do at 
present — 'tis in your power to direct and help 



STUDIES IN rilEOLOGT 325 

me forward, or to put me and my sons under great 
Disadvantages." 

There is no doubt, however, that he was able to 
some extent to carry out the intentions expressed 
in his farewell address ; for we learn from his pastor, 
the Reverend Zebulon Ely, that "This recess from 
public employment a little before his decease, 
afforded him a golden opportunity for his beloved 
sacred duty. This he diligently and delightfully 
improved." ^ This was probably his principal and 
favorite study; for from the same source we learn 
that even in the busy days of the war he devoted 
every moment he could spare to the study of the 
Scriptures in the original Hebrew, in which language 
he was *' expert." 

His correspondence with Doctor Ezra Stiles, 
President of Yale College, shows that at this time 
Trumbull had returned to the pursuit of his chosen 
profession of more than fifty years before, employing 
much of his time in writing sermons which he sub- 
mitted to Doctor Stiles. This he did, no doubt, 
with a view to assist his own studies in theology. 

Although this was his principal study, his fond- 
ness for some secular studies, and the natural ac- 
tivity of a mind which could not brook an idle 
moment, led him, no doubt, to some reading in 
history, jurisprudence and other literature. 

In recognition of his scholastic acquirements and 
statesmanship, he received from Yale College in 
1779 - the honorary degree of LL.D., and the same 

1 Funeral sermon, August 19, 1785. 

^October 27, 1779. Diary of Ezra Stiles, vol. 2, p. 332. 



326 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

degree also from the University of Edinburgh in 
1785. In 1782, he was elected a Fellow of the 
American Academy of Arts and Sciences. These 
honors all came to him unsought, so much so that, 
in the case of the American Academy it became 
necessary for his friend Doctor Stiles to remind 
him to acknowledge the honor and accept the elec- 
tion nearly a year after its date. 

Of all the honors which attach to his name none 
is so cherished by Connecticut men especially as 
the title "Brother Jonathan", which tradition tells 
us that Washington bestowed upon him in the days 
of the Revolution, and which, it is generally be- 
lieved, came to be adopted, for this reason, as the 
household name of the American nation. Until 
recently, this version of the origin of our national 
sobriquet has never been questioned so far as can be 
learned; but in 1902 an elaborate pamphlet of 
thirty-four pages was published by Mr. Albert 
Matthews of Boston,^ discrediting the title as 
acquired by Governor Trumbull in this way, and 
thus, of course, discarding him as the source 
of our national nickname. 

It hardly serves our purpose to go into the elab- 
orate treatment which Mr. Matthews has given 
to this subject, Investigating, as he has, the use of 
the forename Jonathan from the seventeenth century 
down, as a term of derision or mild pleasantry. 
Like most attempts to break down traditions, Mr. 
Matthews* paper gives no positive proof that the 

1" Brother Jonathan, by Albert Matthews; reprinted from the publica- 
tions of the Colonial Society of Massachusetts. Cambridge, 1902." 



''BROTHER JONATHAN'' 327 

tradition is groundless; and, by implication, at 
least, calls for positive proof that it is founded on 
fact. It is safe to say that positive proof, either in 
denial or affirmation of the tradition, is out of the 
question. The earliest affirmation to be found in 
print is in 1846, and the only denial is that of Mr. 
Matthews, fifty-six years later. 

The affirmation of the tradition appears in the 
Norwich [Conn.] Evening Courier of November 12, 
1846, and reads thus: 

**The following account of the Origin of the term 
'Brother Jonathan,' as applied to the United States, 
will, no doubt, gratify the curiosity of a multitude 
of minds, no less than it has done our own. It is 
the first and only account we have ever seen of the 
origin of a term which has come into universal use.^ 
It comes to us through a friend in this city, from 
one of the most intelligent gentlemen and sterling 
Whigs of Connecticut — a gentleman now upwards 
of 80 years of age — himself an active participator 
in the scenes of the Revolution. — Ed. Courier." 

'"brother Jonathan' — origin of the term 
as applied to the united states. 

"When General Washington, after being ap- 
pointed Commander of the Army of the Revo- 
lutionary war, came to Massachusetts to organize 
it, and make preparation for the defense of the 
Country, he found great destitution of ammunition 

1 A letter once in possession of the late Charles C. Johnson of Norwich, 
in reply to an inquiry made by his father to an old citizen in the vicinity, states 
that this old citizen had talked with men of Revolutionary times, who told 
him positively that the title was in general use and originated with Washing- 
ton. 



328 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

and other means, necessary to meet the powerful 
foe he had to contend with, and great difficulty to 
obtain them. If attacked in such condition, the 
cause at once might be hopeless. On one occasion 
at that anxious period, a consultation of the officers 
and others was had, when it seemed no way could 
be devised to make such preparation as was neces- 
sary. His Excellency Jonathan Trumbull the elder, 
was then Governor of the State of Connecticut, on 
whose judgment and aid the General placed the 
greatest reliance, and remarked. We must consult 
'Brother Jonathan' on the subject. The General 
did so, and the Governor was successful in supply- 
ing many of the wants of the Army. When diffi- 
culties after arose, and the army was spread over 
the Country, it became a by-word, 'we must consult 
Brother Jonathan.' The term Yankee is still ap- 
plied to a portion, but, 'Brother Jonathan' has 
now become a designation of the whole country, 
as John Bull has, for England." 

This story Mr. Matthews characterizes as "a 
newspaper story pure and simple; a story unsup- 
ported by one iota of corroborating evidence.'* 
With him it is a question of etymology with which 
historians and biographers have to deal. If we 
could imagine Governor Trumbull on trial for his 
life, on the charge of the capital crime of having 
been called Brother Jonathan by General Washing- 
ton, it must be admitted that no court could convict 
him on the evidence as reported in the Norwich 
Evening Courier. But the case of establishing a 
tradition is hardly similar; and it must be said that 



''BROTHER JONATHAN'' 329 

Mr. Matthews was hardly in a receptive mood for 
** corroborating evidence" at the time of writing 
his paper. His aim is to propound a theory in an 
impartial spirit, of course, as all theories are be- 
lieved by their authors to be propounded. He 
looks for some allusion to the designation in the 
Reverend Zebulon Ely's "Sermon preached at the 
Funeral Solemnity of His Excellency Jonathan 
Trumbull Esq. LL.D.," and utterly ignores the 
mention in that sermon relating to Washington's 
supposed reception of the news of the death of 
"his brother and companion in the late struggles", 
perhaps for the reason that a funeral sermon does 
not use the precise term Brother Jonathan for the 
benefit of future etymologists. It is certainly 
hardly dignified enough for use in a funeral sermon, 
or in the punctilious official correspondence of such 
a man as Washington. But why should this term 
brother be ignored when used by a contemporary 
as a fitting term by which to designate the relations 
between Washington and Trumbull? 

Again, when the term in full is found in use at 
an early period in the Revolution, this very fact 
is used to discredit its application. This occurs in 
the "Literary Diary of Ezra Stiles, D.D., LL.D.," 
edited by Doctor Franklin B. Dexter. On March 
21, 1776, Doctor Stiles, then at Dighton, recording 
the evacuation of Boston by the British, writes: 

"They left Bunker Hill Sdsday Morning 17th 
at Eight o'clock, leaving Images of Hay dressed 
like Sentries standing, with a Label on the Breast 
of one, inscribed 'Welcome, Brother Jonathan.'" 



330 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

It Is admitted by Mr. Matthews that the dis- 
covery of this extract modifies certain statements 
previously made, but "does not appear to affect 
the conclusions in this paper." Beyond this, it 
only seems necessary to him to quote Doctor Dexter's 
editoral footnote, which reads thus: 

"The use of this phrase by the British at this 
date seems to prove that the common explanation 
of its origin (with reference to Washington's con- 
sultations with Governor Jonathan Trumbull) can- 
not be the correct one." 

It should be remembered that Doctor Stiles 
records this statement apparently from hearsay; 
and if his information was not correct, or if his 
memory was at fault, he was at the time so familiar 
with the term "Brother Jonathan" that he had no 
hesitation in adopting it. Assuming, however, that 
the information he records, at a distance of thirty- 
six miles from the scene, was correct, why should 
Doctor Dexter, seconded by Mr. Matthews, assert 
that the date of the use of this term by the British, 
"seems to prove that the common explanation of 
its origin cannot be the correct one?" In the first 
place, how do we know that the British placed the 
figures at Bunker Hill ; and if they did, how do we 
know that they placed the inscription "Welcome, 
Brother Jonathan" on one of them? As a specimen 
of British humor this proceeding of the badly out- 
generaled British In this instance Is not particularly 
striking. The inscription would be more appro- 
priate as a specimen of exultant Yankee irony. 
But even admitting that the British themselves were 



''BROTHER JONATHAN'' 331 

the authors of this stupendous joke, why does that 
fact discredit our Connecticut tradition? Going 
back to our much derided newspaper item of 1846, 
we find it stated that it was precisely at this time, 
when Washington had found Trumbull's assistance 
so valuable, that he applied to him this much dis- 
cussed sobriquet. The two men had been in active 
correspondence for nine months at the time when 
Doctor Stiles records the incident; and it was a 
gratifying fact to the Americans, and doubtless a 
notorious fact to the British, that men and muni- 
tions of war had been pouring in from Connecticut 
under direction of her rebel Governor — the only 
colonial Governor who had dared to be a rebel. Even 
before Washington assumed command, he well knew 
that Ticonderoga had been captured by an expedi- 
tion planned in Connecticut; and that of the sixty- 
three half-barrels of powder which the Americans used 
at Bunker Hill, thirty-six half-barrels had been sent 
from the provident little State with a rebel Governor. 
The time of the evacuation of Boston was none too 
early for Washington to feel assured that he had in 
Connecticut a Brother Jonathan on whom he could 
rely in time of need. 

The intimate and confidential nature of the rela- 
tions between Washington and Trumbull are not 
discussed by Mr. Matthews, probably because they 
form only presumptive evidence of the possibility 
that Washington might have used the term brother 
in its full significance in speaking of Trumbull. 
Certain it is that in a letter of condolence Washing- 
ton signs himself, "Yours, with esteem and afi^ec- 



332 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

tion." But references to such relations partake 
of the "unscientific" method which Mr. Matthews 
deplores, and the temptation to discuss his view 
of the case has led us already further than we had 
intended to go. If we are to insist upon direct 
evidence of every event in history, throwing aside 
tradition as worthless, many incidents of Connec- 
ticut history must certainly be discredited; as, for 
example, the Charter Oak episode, the, silencing 
of Governor Benjamin Fletcher by beating the 
drums; or the secret debate on the Stamp Act; 
for these incidents rest solely on tradition. And 
if we extend our researches to history in general, 
we should probably find it alarming to know how 
small a portion of its statements can be proved by 
direct evidence, such as seems to be called for to 
prove the authenticity of our Brother Jonathan 
tradition. 

From a merely cold, logical view, it is unimportant 
to assert this tradition. Governor Trumbull's record 
stands unchanged whether Washington did or did 
not call him Brother Jonathan. And yet, from a 
sentimental, unscientific point of view, the title 
bears with it an honor which is worth far more to 
such an American as Trumbull than any order of 
knighthood ever bestowed by royal accolade. Let 
us be sentimental, then. The Declaration of Inde- 
pendence is a very sentimental document, and 
patriotism itself is a sentiment, pure and simple, 
and "unscientific." 



CHAPTER XXVIII 

CONTINUED GOOD HEALTH SUDDEN ILLNESS 

DEATH HIS pastor's ESTIMATE OF HIS PERSONAL 

CHARACTER — WASHINGTON'S TRIBUTE THE TRUM- 
BULL TOMB AND EPITAPH 

THERE is but little left to add to the story 
of this long, busy, useful life. In his 
retirement it must be believed that this 
good old man found much comfort. He had and 
improved, first of all, the opportunity which he 
craved for calm and delightful religious medita- 
tion and study. Notwithstanding the tremen- 
dous strain of the eight years of war, his mental 
faculties continued unimpaired, and his bodily health 
remarkably good for a man of his years and burdens. 
If he allowed public affairs to occupy his mind to 
any great extent, as he could hardly fail to do, it 
must have been with grave concern that he regarded 
the still uncertain condition of the national govern- 
m.ent. We have seen his eagerness for the adoption 
of the articles of confederation during the war; 
and we have seen his strong and unqualified plea 
for a suitable federation of the victorious States. 
Thus we may well imagine that he longed to see the 
victory made efi^ective by the adoption of a federal 
constitution such as he advocated. 

But this was not to be : he did not live to see the 

333 



334 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

victory of our arms, which he had done so much to 
promote, crowned by the estabhshing of a stable 
form of repubHcan government. He had only an 
abiding faith, as had Washington, that this would 
come in due time, and this was his consolation for 
the deferred hope of the adoption of a federal con- 
stitution. 

Early in August, 1785, he was prostrated by a 
fever which soon assumed what was then called a 
malignant form. For twelve days the toil-worn 
body resisted the fatal stroke of the disease. At 
last complications developed, and on the seventeenth 
of August he reached the peaceful end of his life. 

It is recorded in the family Bible by his son 
Jonathan that his death was "easy, quiet and calm", 
and that he was **in possession of Reason to the 
last, as far as could be discovered." 

It was a fitting end to such a life: no gradual loss 
of the faculties, no apparent decline even of the 
physical powers. The active mind remained ap- 
parently active to the last, and the worn body was 
spared the long wasting process which so often 
renders the last years of life a burden to the aged 
sufferer. He felt and knew that his life work was 
done; and for more than a year he had been calmly 
waiting and preparing for the end. 

At his funeral, on the nineteenth of August, his 
pastor, the Reverend Zebulon Ely, preached an 
impressive sermon, from the text, 

"So Moses, the servant of the Lord, died there in 
the land of Moab, according to the word of the 
Lord" (Deut. 34:5). 



HIS PASTOR'S APPRECIATION 335 

The long eulogy, after the manner of the time, 
has the ring of sincerity, and furnishes the fullest 
description of his personal character which can be 
found in print. After an eloquent eulogy on his 
public character and record, Pastor Ely says: 

"As a man, he wonderfully possessed the amiable 
grace of condescending with dignity; the charac- 
teristic of true greatness. He knew how to adapt 
himself to persons of the greatest diversity of cir- 
cumstances and conditions of life, having learned 
to please all with whom he conversed to their edifica- 
tion. There was nothing of that magisterial loftiness 
and ostentatious parade, too often attendant on men 
of rank and elevated stations of life. We may with 
good reason conclude he became so eminent and 
amiable In this respect, by daily contemplating 
the perfect deportment of his Divine Master; who 
hath, with singular propriety, directed us to learn 
of him being meek and lowly. 

"His temper was uncommonly mild, serene, and 
cheerful; his words weighty and Instructive; his 
speech rather low, and his whole carriage graceful 
and worthy. His constant seasonable attendance 
on Divine worship, and his unafi^ected devotion in 
the House of god, were most beautiful. 

"As a parent, he was affectionate, venerable, 
and endearing, by precept and example carefully 
forming the minds and manners of his offspring. 
As a neighbor he was kind and obliging. 

"As a student, he was exceedingly careful of 
precious tim.e, diligent and indefatigable in his 
researches after truth, 'till the close of his life. His 



336 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

acquaintance with history was very extensive, and 
his accuracy in chronology unparallel'd. 

"But his chief glory (as must be that of every 
man) ariseth from his truly religious and pious 
character. What would it avail that we view him 
as filling the most dignified oflPice in the republic, 
receiving the applause of his country, and that we 
hear his fame echoed from European shores, could 
not we also view him as the servant of the lord, 
born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh nor 
of the will of man, but of god. What would it avail 
us that we view him as one accomplished in human 
erudition, famous as a linguist, a theologian, a 
politician, an historian and chronologist; could we 
not also contemplate him, as one who gloried in the 
cross of CHRIST, depending alone on his merits for 
salvation, acknowledging all that to which he had 
attained to be wholly of grace, and accounting them 
excellent above what eye hath seen, ear heard, or the 
heart of man conceived!^ 

We may well imagine that the loss of such a man 
in the little community of Lebanon was most deeply 
felt. Many are said to have borne testimony to his 
kindly, neighborly ministrations in time of need; 
and all, of high or low degree, must have felt for 
him an esteem mingled with real affection. 

It is, of course, natural to turn from the genial, 
kindly record of his private life to the more impor- 
tant and imposing record of his public life. No 
more fitting testimonial to his public and private 
life can be found than in the words of Washington 
in reply to a letter from Trumbull's son Jonathan 



WASHINGTON'S REGARD 337 

in which he had announced the death of his 
father : 

"Mount Vernon, Oct. ist, 1785. 

"My Dear Sir: It so happened that your letter of 
the first of last month did not reach me until Satur- 
day's post. 

"You know too well the sincere respect and 
regard I entertained for your venerable father's 
public and private character, to require assurance 
of the concern I felt for his death ; or of that sym- 
pathy in your feelings, for the loss of him, which is 
prompted by friendship. Under this loss, however, 
great as your feelings must have been at the first 
shock, you have everything to console you. 

"A long and well-spent life in the service of his 
country places Governor Trumbull among the first 
of patriots. In the social duties he yielded to no 
one; and his lamp, from the common course of 
nature, being nearly extinguished, worn down with 
age and cares, yet retaining his mental faculties in 
perfection, are blessings which rarely attend ad- 
vanced life. All these combined, have secured to 
his memory unusual respect and love here, and, 
no doubt, unmeasurable happiness hereafter. 

"I am sensible that none of these observations 
can have escaped you, that I can offer nothing 
which your own reason has not already suggested 
upon the occasion; and being of Sterne's opinion, 
that 'before an affliction is digested, consolation 
comes too soon, and after it is digested it comes too 
late, there is but a mark between these two, al- 
most as fine as a hair, for a comforter to take aim 



338 JONATHAN TRUMBULL 

at/ I rarely attempt it, nor should I add more on 
this subject to you, as it will be a renewal of sorrow, 
by calling afresh to your remembrance things that 
had better be forgotten. 

''My principal pursuits are of a rural nature, In 
which I have great delight, especially as I am blessed 
with the enjoyment of good health. Mrs. Washing- 
ton, on the contrary, Is hardly ever well; but thank- 
ful for your kind remembrance of her, joins me In 
every good wish for you, Mrs. Trumbull, and your 
family. 

"Be assured that with sentiments of the purest 
esteem, 

"I am, Dear Sir, 
"Your affectionate friend 
"and obedient servant 
"G° Washington.'* 

The pilgrim to our historic towns, when visiting 
the town of Lebanon, will find among its beautiful 
hills and valleys an old burial ground located by the 
side of the main thoroughfare. Prominent In this 
burial ground is the Trumbull family tomb, where 
the hero and patriot whose life-story has been 
attempted In these pages was laid to rest a century 
and a quarter ago. The tomb Is surmounted by 
a broken shaft, on the pedestal of which may still 
be read, in small and slowly perishing letters, the 
following inscription: 

"Sacred to the memory of Jonathan trumbull, 
Esq., who, unaided by birth or powerful connections, 
but blessed with a noble and virtuous mind, arrived 
to the highest station in government. His patriot- 



A CLEAN RECORD 339 

ism and firmness during 50 years' employment in 
public life, and particularly in the very important 
part he acted in the American Revolution, as Gov- 
ernor of Connecticut, the faithful page of History 
will record. 

"Full of years and honors, rich in benevolence, 
and firm in the faith and hopes of Christianity, 
he died August 17th, 1785, ^tatis 75." 

We may search "the faithful page of History" in 
vain for the record of a man who in utter self- 
forgetfulness, in earnest, patriotic devotion, toiled 
less for personal distinction and more for the good 
of a righteous cause than did he. Omitting the 
customary biographer's summing up of a career 
and estimate of a character, one thing may be said: 
he gained the supreme political honor of the present 
time and all time — a clean record. And if our 
poets are doing anything more than singing a 
melodious song to the words "The path of duty 
is the way to glory", there is glory enough at the 
end of such a life as his whose epitaph we read on the 
old tombstone at Lebanon; for, in a high official 
position, in the days of storm and stress, he never 
swerved from the path of duty. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 

The following list includes only books and documents 
from which information has been derived and used, 
but does not include general histories of the United 
States, the American Revolution, and the State of 
Connecticut, all of which have been freely consulted, 
mainly with reference to the plan of this biography. 

Beardsley, E. Edwards. Life of William Samuel 
Johnson, LL.D., 1876. 

Borland, Robert. Border Raids and Reivers. 

Bouton, Nathaniel. Historical Discourse in Com- 
memoration of the Two-hundredth Anniversary 
of the Settlement of Norwalk, Conn., in 165 1. 
N. Y., 1851. ■ 

Bronson, Henry. A Historical Account of Connec- 
ticut Currency, Continental Money, and the 
Finances of the Revolution. In Papers of the 
New Haven Colony Historical Society, Vol. i. 

Brown, William Garrott. Life of Oliver Ellsworth. 
N. Y., 1905. 

Caulkins, Frances M. History of New London. 
New London (reprinted), 1895. 
History of Norwich. 1866. 

Chastellux, Francois Jean de. Voyages dans TAmer- 
ique Septentrionale dans les Annees 1780, 1781, 
& 1782. 2 Vols. Paris, 1786. 

Connecticut Historical Society. Collections. Vols. 
I, 2, 7, 8, 9. 

341 



342 BIBLIOGRAPHT 

Manuscript collections: 

Correspondence of Jonathan Trumbull. 
Correspondence of Jonathan Trumbull, Junior. 
Correspondence of Joseph Trumbull. 

Connecticut — Secretary of State. State Records of 
Connecticut, from 1 782-1 785. (Original record 
books, not yet printed.) 

Contributions to the ecclesiastical history of Con- 
necticut, prepared under the direction of the 
General Association. New Haven, 1861. 

Ely, Reverend Zebulon. A Sermon Preached at the 
Funeral Solemnity of his Excellency Jonathan 
Trumbull Esq., LL. D., Late Governor of the 
State of Connecticut, August 19, 1785. Hart- 
ford, 1786. 

Fisher, Sydney George. The Making of Pennsyl- 
vania. Philadelphia, 1896. 

Fitch, Thomas. Some Reasons which Influenced 
the Governor to Take and the Councillors to 
Administer the Oath Required by Act of 
Parliament, Commonly Called the Stamp Act; 
Humbly Submitted to the Consideration of the 
Public. Hartford, 1766. 

Force, Peter. American Archives, 4th & 5th series. 
9 Vols. 

Ford, Worthington. The Writings of Washington. 
14 Vols. N. Y., 1893. 

Gilbert, G. A. The Connecticut Loyalists. In 
American Historical Review, 4:273. 

Harvard University. Quinquennial Catalogue of 
the Officers and Graduates, 1636-1900. 



BIBLIOGRAPHT 343 

Hatch, Louis Clinton. The Administration of the 
American Revolutionary Army. N. Y., 1904. 

Hempstead, Joshua. Diary, 1711-1758. (Col- 
lections of the New London County Historical 
Society, Vol. i.) 

Hine, Orlo D. Early Lebanon; an Historical Ad- 
dress Delivered in Lebanon, Connecticut. . . . 
July 4, 1876, With an Appendix of Historical 
Notes by Nathaniel H. Morgan, of Hartford, 
Conn. Hartford, 1880. Historical Magazine 
and Notes and Queries. Vol. 2. N. Y., 1858. 

Hoadly, Charles J., Ed. Colonial Records of Con- 
necticut. State Records of Connecticut. 

Hunt, Agnes. The Provincial Committees of Safety 
of the American Revolution. Cleveland, Ohio., 
1904. 

Johnson, Mary Coffin. The Higleys and Their 
Ancestry. N. Y., 1896. 

Lea, J. Henry. Contributions to a Trumbull Gene- 
alogy from Gleanings in English Fields. [Re- 
printed from the New England Historical and 
Genealogical Register. "] Boston, 1895. 

Lecky, W. E. H. A History of England In the 
Eighteenth Century. Vols. 3 and 4. 

Lincoln, William, Ed. Journals of each Provincial 
Congress of Massachusetts in 1774 and 1775, 
and of the Committee of Safety. Boston, 1838. 

Livingston, William Farrand. Israel Putnam, Pio- 
neer, Ranger and Major General. 1718-1790. 
N. Y., 1901. 

McMasters, J. B. History of the People of the 



344 BIBLIOGRAPHT 

United States from the Revolution to the Civil 
War. Vol. I. 

Massachusetts Historical Society. Collections: 5th 
series, vols. 9 and 10; 7th series, vols. 2 and 
3. (Trumbull papers.) Also unpublished Trum- 
bull papers. 

Matthews, Albert. Brother Jonathan. (In Publi- 
cations of the Colonial Society of Massachusetts, 
vol. 7.) 1902. 

Mathews, Alfred. Ohio and Her Western Reserve. 
N. Y., 1902. 

New London County Historical Society. Records 
and Papers. Vol. i, 1890; vol. 2, 1904. 

Palfrey, John Gorham. History of New England. 
Vols. 4 and 5. 

Parkman, F. A Half-century of Conflict. 2 Vols. 
Boston, 1893. 

PauUin, Charles Oscar. The Navy of the American 
Revolution. Cleveland, 1906. 

Peters, Samuel. General History of Connecticut 
... to which is added, additions to the appen- 
dix, notes and extracts from letters, verifying 
many important statements made by the author, 
by Samuel Jarvis McCormick. N. Y., 1877. 

Quincy, Josiah. History of Harvard University. 
2 Vols. Cambridge, Mass., 1840. 

Robinson, Edward. Memoir of the Reverend 
William Robinson, Formerly Pastor of the 
Congregational Church in Southington, Conn., 
with Some Account of his Ancestors in this 
Country. Privately printed. N. Y., 1859. 



BIBLIOGRAPHT 345 

Rowe, John. Letters and Diary, 1 759-1 762; 1764- 
1779. Boston, 1903. 

Sabine, Lorenzo. Biographical Sketches of LoyaHsts of 
the American Revolution. 2 Vols. Boston, 1864. 

Sparks, Jared. The Writings of George Washing- 
ton. 12 Vols. Boston, 1837. 

Stiles, Ezra. Literary Diary, 3 vols. N. Y., 1901. 

Stuart, Isaac W. Life of Jonathan Trumbull, Sen., 
Governor of Connecticut. Boston, 1849. 

Townshend, Charles Hervey. British Invasion of 
New Haven, Connecticut, together with Some 
Account of their Landing and Burning the 
Towns of Fairfield and Norwalk, July, 1779. 
New Haven, 1879. 

Trumbull, Benjamin, D. D. Complete History of 
Connecticut, Civil and Ecclesiastical ... to 
the year 1764. 2 Vols. 

Trumbull, James Hammond. The True-blue Laws 
of Connecticut and New Haven, and the False 
Blue-laws Invented by the Reverend Samuel 
Peters. Hartford, 1876. 

Trumbull, Colonel John. Autobiography, Reminis- 
cences and Letters. 1841. 

Trumbull, Jonathan. Joseph Trumbull, the First 
Commissary-general of the Continental Army. 
In Records and Papers of the New London 
County Historical Society. Vol. 2, p. 329. 

The Conflicting Accounts of Tryon's Invasion of 
Norwalk. In Magazine of History. Vol. 3, p. 18. 

Trumbull, Jonathan, Ed. The Lebanon War Office. 
Hartford, 1891. 



346 BIBLIOGRAPHT 

Tuckerman, Bayard. Life of General Philip Schuy- 
ler. 1733-1804. N. Y., 1904. 

Weir, John F. John Trumbull; a Brief Sketch of 
his Life, to Which is Added a Catalogue of his 
Works. N. Y., 1901. 

Windham, Conn., District of. Probate Records. 



INDEX 



INDEX 



ACADIANS, EXILE OF, 52. 

"Act for the Establishment of 
Public Credit and to Provide for 
the Exigencies of this State," 262. 

Adams, John, consulted by Washing- 
ton, 180; in Amsterdam, 275; 
letter quoted, 151. 

Adams, Samuel, 114. 

Admiral Keppel, capture of, 241. 

Albany Congress, 99; failure of, 53. 

Alden, Elizabeth, 25. 

Alden, John, 25. 

Allen, Ethan, leader of Green Moun- 
tain boys, 153, 155. 

American Academy of Arts and 
Sciences, 326. 

Andre, execution of, 273. 

Apthorp, Stephen, merchant (Bristol, 
England), 69. 

Armstrong, General, brutality against 
Connecticut settlers, 297. 

Arnold, Benedict, treachery of, 265, 
272; leads expedition for New 
London, 280-282. 

Articles of Confederation, 245; 
adopted, 224, 294. 

Avery, Elisha, Deputy Commissary, 
203, 204. 

Backus, Eunice, 30. 

Baron Van der Capellan. See Derk. 

" Battle of the Kegs," 243. 

Belcher, Jonathan, Chief Justice of 

Superior Court, 16. 
Belknap, Doctor Jeremy, quoted, 94. 
Bennington, battle of, 212. 
Blackslee, Abraham, of New Haven 

(Tory), 135. 



Bliss, John, 151. 

Booth and Lane (London merchants), 
64. 

Boston, convention at, 266; evacua- 
tion of, 183. 

Boston Massacre, 113. 

Boston Port Bill, 119, 120, 121. 

Boston Tea Party, 1 16. 

Bowdoin, Pitts and Flucker (Boston 
merchants), 64. 

Braddock, General, defeat of, 52. 

Brandywine, battle of, 212. 

Brewster family, 6, 7. 

British and Hessian soldiers in 
Revolution, 250. 

British use of term " Brother Jona- 
than," 329, 330. 

British warfare, blot on, 282. 

Brooklyn Heights, retreat from, 197. 

" Brother Jonathan," legend of origin, 
326-332. 

Buckley, John, 51. 

Bunker Hill, battle of, 158. 

Burgoyne, defeat of, 212; surrender 
of, 212. 

Burke, Edmund, 274. 

Bushnell, David (of Saybrook), in- 
vention of, 242-243; made cap- 
tain, 243. 

Butler, Colonel Zebulon, ico. 

Camden evacuated, 279. 
Chad's Ford, battle of, 217. 
Champion, Colonel Henry, appointed 

purchaser of cattle, 225-226. 
Chandler, Ellinor, 4. 
Charleston, British cooped in, 279; 

fall of, 265. 



349 



350 



INDEX 



Chastellux, Marquis de, 277; quoted, 
258. 

Cherry Valley massacre, 236. 

Church, Benjamin, classmate of Gov- 
ernor Trumbull, 16. 

Cincinnati, Society of, 300-301, 303. 

Clap, Thomas, President of Yale, 35. 

Clinton, Sir Henry, 265; hoodwinked, 
280. 

Colchester provides winter quarters 
for French Hussars, 268. 

Collection of Massachusetts Historical 
Society, 256. 

Colonial Records of Connecticut, 185. 

Colt, Peter, Deputy Commissary 
General, 226; at New Haven, 250. 

Commissary Department, disorgan- 
ized, 226, 227; failure to pay, 260. 

Committee of Correspondence and 
Enquiry appointed, 117; sends 
delegates to First Continental 
Congress, 131. 

Connecticut Courant, 89. 

Connecticut, Colony of, activities in 
Revolution, 181-182; alarming 
situation in, 251; attitude in Rev- 
olution, 153-154; boundary dis- 
putes with Massachusetts, 50-52; 
called State, 184; calls for money, 
259; capture of British ships, 241, 
242; church government in, 23-24; 
clergy of, 121; conditions in, 23; 
conservatism of, 116-117; contri- 
bution to French War, 49; con- 
tribution to Revolution, 331; course 
taken with Massachusetts, 143-151; 
court records quoted, 83-85; dan- 
ger to, from sedition, 45-46; Decla- 
ration of Independence of, 185; 
Declaration quoted, 186-191; dele- 
gates to Second Continental Con- 
gress, 137; desertion of soldiers, 
168-169; difficulty in filling quo- 
tas, 209; drain on treasury, 208; 
encounter with Pennsylvanians, 



296-297; enlistments difficult, 265; 
enlistments impeded by smallpox, 
198; episodes in history of, 332; 
equips northern fleet on Lake 
Champlain, 199; Federalism and 
State Rights, 299, 312, 313; first 
aggressive act of Revolution, 153; 
first invasion by British, 210; 
furnishes men in Revolution, 158; 
161, 181; furnishes powder in 
Revolution, 157; Indian affairs, 47; 
influences at work in, 118; issues 
bills of credit, 152; issues paper 
money, 263; joins in capture of 
Louisburg, 48; lawsuits, 91-103; 
lays taxes, 243-244, 262; letter to 
Provincial Congress of Massachu- 
setts, 154-155; levies troops, 161, 
179; "Lighthorse" regiment dis- 
banded, 195; loan to French 
commissioner, 264; locating meet- 
inghouses, 33; men in service, 53; 
method of raising money, 44-45; 
military preparations, 134-135; 
money problems, 243, 247-248; 
naval affairs in, 184-185, 192-193; 
naval service, 242; on war footing, 
3S> 36) 37; opens negotiations with 
General Gage, 153; parties in, 77- 
78, 86-87; party lines in, 82; pays 
Governor Trumbull, 319; policy of, 
104, 106; prize money, 242; prob- 
lems of, 39; provides winter 
quarters for French hussars, 268; 
question of officers' half pay, 299, 
300,318; quota lacking, 294; quota 
maintained at maximum, 288; raises 
nine battalions, 185; reimbursed by 
England, 48, 49; relations with 
England, 73; relieved of army, 226; 
religious awakening, 30-31; re- 
sources of, 259; response to Massa- 
chusetts' call, 142-143, 152; req- 
uisitions for French allies, 264; 
revision of statutes, 44; sends aid 



INDEX 



351 



Connecticut^ Colony of, {continued) 
to Rhode Island, 238; sends seven 
regiments of militia to New York, 
192; sends ships' carpenters and 
supplies to New York and Ver- 
mont, 198-199; sends troops to Wy- 
oming, 236; services in New York 
campaign, 197; settlers in Wyoming 
Valley, 235, 236, 237; share in pro- 
visions and money for Revolution, 
263; spirit of, 120, 124; struggle 
to establish rights, 8-9; Susque- 
hanna Case, 98, 100-103, 237, 
294-295; taxed by Congress, 224; 
taxes imposed by, 108-109; Tory 
element in, 135-137; town meetings 
in, 121; Twenty-first Regiment 
sent to New York, 197; unhappy 
military experience, 168-169; i^rii- 
que position of, 119; unpaid 
farmers, 259-260; wins Mohegan 
Case, 98; wins Western Reserve, 
loi. 
"Connecticut Currency," 261 note. 
Continental Army, 209, 211; address 
to, at Newburgh, 312-313; com- 
missary appointed, 171; deficiencies 
in, 184; early days of, 165; in 
Canada, 185; march on Yorktown, 
280; munitions, 272-273; on verge 
of mutiny, 259; pay of officers in, 
299-300; reinforced by French 
troops, 264; smallpox in, 198; 
starving, 272; term of enlistment, 
209. 
Continental Congress, advances Gen- 
eral Putnam, 159; appoints com- 
missioners in Susquehanna Case, 
295; appoints Joseph Trumbull 
commissary general, 171; appoints 
Washington commander-in-chief, 
159; calls for provisions, 263; calls 
on New Jersey for Minute Men, 
180; contraction of currency, 261- 
262; degrades Generals Spencer 



and Wooster, 159; driven from 
Philadelphia, 312; First, 131, 135; 
incompetence of, 179, 180, 299, 
313; opens, 155; ratifies treaty 
alliance with France, 231; reorgan- 
izes Commissary Department, 226- 
227; Second, 137; sends Governor 
Franklin to Governor Trumbull for 
parole, 192. 
Continental money, decline in value, 

261. 
Convention of New Jersey, 192. 
Conway cabal, 213-219, 241. 
Copley, John Singleton, 275. 
Cornwallis, surrender of, 283, 294, 298. 
Corny, Louis Dominique Ethis de, 

loan to, 264. 
Council of Censors of Pennsylvania, 

297. 
Council of Safety, discusses Declara- 
tion of Independence, 191; fur- 
nishes supplies to Valley Forge, 
225-226; grants money for enter- 
tainment, 270; importance of, 157; 
meetings, 156, 157, 158, 184; 
members of, 156; orders powder 
forwarded to Massachusetts, 157; 
paroles Doctor Johnson, 254; rec- 
ords of, 157-158; strengthens 
defence of New London, 251. 
Cowpens, victory at, 279. 
Crane, row-galley, 185; built at 

Haddum, 192. 
Currency, change in, 65. 
Cyrus, capture of, 241. 

Dagget, Doctor Naphtali (Presi- 
dent of Yale), 250. 

Danbury, awarded by British, 2IO, 
211; military camp at, 278. 

Danielson, Timothy, 151. 

Dartmouth College, 62. 

Dartmouth, Earl of, issues mandate, 
137, 138; Governor Trumbull's 
letter to, 138-141. 



352 



INDEX 



Davis, Captain (of Brimfield), tarred 
and feathered, 123. 

Deane, Silas, delegate to first Con- 
tinental Congress, 131; corre- 
spondence with Governor Trum- 
bull, 245-246, 287-288. 

Declaration of Independence, 191. 

Declaratory Act, 80. 

Defence, Connecticut brig, 48, 193, 
241. 

Derk, John (Baron Van der Capellan), 
255; a friend of America, 255; 
correspondence with Governor 
Trumbull, 256, 257; secures loan 
to America, 256. 

D'Estaing, Admiral, at Rhode Island, 
237, 238. 

Dexter, Doctor Franklin, editor, 329, 

330. 
Dibble, Filer, of Stamford (Tory), 

135- 
Dixon, Edward, of St. Kitts, England, 

69, 70. 

Dolbeare, Benjamin (Boston mer- 
chant), 64. 

Dorchester, Massachusetts, 6, 7. 

Drake family, 6, 7. 

Dudley, Joseph, 92. 

Duportail, General, at Weathersfield 
conference, 277. 

Dyer, Amelia, married Joseph Trum- 
bull, 29, 233. 

Dyer, Eliphalet, 77, 156; delegate to 
First Continental Congress, 131. 

Edson, Josiah, fate of, 17. 

Edwards, Jonathan, warnings of, 30. 

Eels, Reverend Nathaniel, at Lexing- 
ton, 18. 

Elderkin, Jedediah, 156; appointed 
to provide barracks, 268. 

Eliot, Samuel, Jr., letter quoted, 241- 
242. 

Ellsworth, Oliver, 312; writes to 
Governor Trumbull, 262. 



Ely, Reverend Zebulon, 198; quoted, 

325. 
Enfield, transferred to Massachusetts, 

50, Si- 
England, financial condition of, 261; 
policy towards America, 49, 73-76, 
92, 95, 102, 112-113, 227, 230; task 
of making peace, 299. See also 
British. 
Eutaw Springs, battle of, 279. 
Evening Courier (Norwich), quoted, 

327-328. 
Eyre, Colonel, at Fort Griswold, 281. 

Fairfield, raid on, 249, 250, 252. 
Farmington, burns Port Bill, 121. 
Fenwick, Colonel, legacy of, 102. 
Fitch, Colonel Eleazer, Governor 

Trumbull's partner, 65, 66. 
Fitch, Governor Thomas, 44, 53, 59, 

77-7^, 79. 87» 90- 
Flour, cost of, 247-248. 
Fort Griswold, massacre at, 280-282. 
Fort Ticonderoga, capture of, 153, 

155; evacuation of, 211; proved 

untenable, 175. 
Fort Trumbull, retreat from, 280. 
Foster, Jedediah, on Massachusetts 

committee, 151. 
Fowler, Judge Jonathan (Tory), 166. 
Fox, Charles James, 274. 
France, war with, 35, 36, 40, 47, 52, 

66. 
Franklin, Benjamin, 76, 232; remark 

of, 212. 
Franklin, Governor William, case of, 

102. 

Frazier, Champion and Hawley, 304. 

French allies, blockaded at Brest, 

266; blockaded at Newport, 266. 

Gage, Governor Thomas (Tory), 
118, 119, 122, 147; correspondence 
with Governor Trumbull, 144-147, 
148-150. 



INDEX 



353 



Garth, General George, in raid on 
New Haven, 249; in raid on Nor- 
walk, 251. 

Gaspee, affair of schooner, 1 16. 

Gates, General, entertainment at 
Hartford, 241; inefficiency of, 
266, 272; influence on Jonathan 
Trumbull, Jr., 216; intrigues of, 
208; scheme against Schuyler, 200; 
share in Conway cabal, 241; super- 
sedes Schuyler, 212. 

Gay, Ebenezer, on committee, 43. 

Gazette (Rivington's), 137; sup- 
pressed, 166-167. 

General Assembly of Connecticut, 
act on Governor's farewell address, 
313-314; action in regulation of 
prices, 224; action on Boston Port 
Bill, 120; action on Writs of Assist- 
ance, 84; adopts Articles of Con- 
federation, 224; adopts Governor 
Trumbull's letter to Silas Deane, 
287; adopts title of " His Excel- 
lency" for Governor, 220; appoints 
Committee of Correspondence and 
Enquiry, 117; appoints Council 
of Safety, 156; appoints meeting- 
houses, 33; discussion of Stamp Act, 
75~7^i elects Griswold governor, 
317; elects Trumbull governor, 81, 
86, 89, 288, 300; instructions to dele- 
gates at Congress, 300; instructs 
delegates to declare for independ- 
ence, 185; investigation of story 
against Governor Trumbull, 293; 
mobilizes troops, 153; passes act 
favoring collection of imposts, 318; 
passes act for establishment of pub- 
lic credit, 262; passes act regard- 
ing duties on imports, 299; peti- 
tions to, 50, 51, 56; places embargo 
on exportations, 143; preparations 
for war, 36, 134, 152; quoted, 
46-47, 53; records of, 184, 185; 
repeals tax, iii; resolutions quoted, 



314-315, 270-271; seeks charter 
rights, 101-102; sends delegates to 
Stamp Act Congress, y6; sessions 
of, 42, 43; special act of, 44; taxes 
laid, 255. 

General Committee of City and 
County of New York, 167-168. 

Germaine, Lord George, 227, 273. 

Germantown, battle of, 212. 

Governor of Grenada, West Indies, 69. 

Governor's Council, policy toward 
home government, 106; resolu- 
tions adopted, 120; Trumbull 
elected to, 36 ; votes to provide 
supplies, 134. 

Great Awakening in Connecticut, 
30-31- 

Green, Francis (Tory), 167; treat- 
ment of, 121-122. 

Green, Thomas (Tory), anecdote of, 
121-123. 

Green and Walker (Boston mer- 
chants), 64. 

Greene, General, 278; appeals for 
money, 265; march to Eutaw 
Springs, 279; military genius of, 
277; victories in South, 284. 

Greene, Governor, asks aid, 237, 238. 

Groton, burning of, 282; relief of 
inhabitants, 283. 

Griswold, Matthew, Deputy Gov- 
ernor, 156, 225, 312; elected 
governor, 317. 

Guilford, controversy in, 23. 

Guilford Court House, victory at, 279. 

Hay, price of, 247. 

Hale, Nathan, patriotism of, 197. 

Hall, Colonel Benjamin, appointed 

commissioner, 51. 
Harlem Heights, battle of, 197. 
Hartford, convention at, 266, 270. 
Harvard, courses at, 13; influence of, 

18; registration custom at, 11-12, 

60, 61. 



354 



INDEX 



Heath, General William, 251, 282; in 

New York, 279. 
Hempstead, Joshua, diary of, 42. 
Higley, Hannah (mother of Governor 

Trumbull), lineage, 5-7, 60; death, 

91- 
Higley, Hannah (Drake) (grand- 
mother of Governor Trumbull), 

5-6; ancestry of, 6-7. 
Higley, John, 5; early days of, 6. 
"History of Connecticut," 126. 
"History of Jonathan Trumbull, the 

Rebel Governor", 128, 129; quoted, 

129-130. 
"History of New England," by Miss 

Caulkins, 116 note. 
"History of the People of the United 

States from the Revolution to the 

Civil War," 297. 
Hillsborough, Lord, 106, 107, 109, 

III, 112; in Mohegan Case, 96; 

made Secretary of State, 104. 
Hoadley, Doctor Charles J., 186. 
Holland, loan to America, 255-256. 
Hopkins, Governor, legacy of, 102. 
Horseneck, salt works at, 249. 
Hubbard, Nehemiah, quartermaster, 

270. 
Hull, Mr., Collector of Customs, 55, 

56, 73- 

Huntington, Benjamin, 156. 

Huntington, Jabez, 156. 

Huntington, General Jedediah, letter 
to Governor Trumbull, 214-216. 

Huntington, Hezekiah, of Nor- 
wich, 66. 

Huntington, Joseph, Reverend, elec- 
tion sermon, 317. 

Huntington, Governor Samuel, 35, 

156. 

Huntington, Long Island, English 
fleet at, 250. 

Hutchinson, Judge Ellakim, at Har- 
vard, 17. 

Hutchinson, Thomas (Chief Justice), 



41, loi; grants Writs of Assistance, 
41, 73, 82; letter quoted, 95; 
rank in Harvard, 15-16; Tory 
sympathies, 118, 121. 

Indian School at Lebanon, 62. 
Ingersoll, Jared, Connecticut agent 
at London, 57, 59, 76. 

Jackson, Richard, Connecticut agent 

in England, 68, 83, 93. 
Johnson, Henry (Boston merchant), 

64. 
Johnson, Reverend Stephen, of Lyme, 

77- 
Johnson, William Samuel, ambassador 
to General Gage, 147, 252; arrest 
of, 252, 253; attorney in Mohegan 
Case, 93-98, 102, 103, 104, 105, 
1X2, 143; counsel in Susquehanna 
Case, 254; delegate to constitu- 
tional convention, 254; examina- 
tion by Lieutenant Colonel Dimon, 
253; intercession with General 
Tryon, 252; letters quoted, 83, 
86, 96, 105-106, 106-107, 107-108, 
109, 113, 295, 312; meets Governor 
Trumbull, 253-254; neutral in 
Revolution, 252; paroled, 253, 254. 

Kent, Benjamin, classmate of Gov- 
ernor Trumbull, 18. 

Kneeland, William, President of Har- 
vard, letter to Governor Trumbull, 

173-174- 

Knowlton, death of, 197. 

Knox, General, at Weathersfield con- 
ference, 277; sent to New England, 
273- 

Lafayette, Marquis de, reception 

to, 270. 
Lake Champlain, navy at, 199. 
Lane, Booth and Frazier, Governor 

Trumbull's letter to, 71. 
Lane, Son and Eraser, Governor 

Trumbull's letter to, 324-325. 



INDEX 



355 



Laurens, Henry, President of Con- 
tinental Congress, 256; corre- 
spondence with Governor Trumbull, 
233-234, 237, 240, 244. 

Laurens, Colonel John, 240, 241. 

Lauzun, Due de, memoirs of, 268. 

Lea, J. Henry, researches of, 4. 

Lebanon, Connecticut, attitude 
towards Port Bill, 121; Council of 
Safety meeting in, 156-157; elects 
Jonathan Trumbull delegate to 
General Assembly, 24, 32; fair 
and market in, 62; French troops 
in, 268-269; growth of, 8; home 
of Governor Trumbull, 15; im- 
portance of, 157; Indian school at, 
62; lack of schools in, 9; library 
in, 34-35; meetinghouse war in, 
9, 23; recognized by General 
Assembly, 7, 19; social equality in, 
II, 12; themes of discussion in, 
20; Tisdale school in, 61; Trum- 
bull family settles in, 7; Trumbull 
family tomb in, 338-339; Trum- 
bull (Governor's) interest in, 63. 

Ledyard, John, of Hartford, 66. 

Ledyard, Colonel William, death at 
Fort Griswold, 281. 

Lee, General Charles, 180, 181, 231; 
capture of, 207; incompetence of, 
179, 180. 

Leeter, Governor William, 87. 

Leffingwell, Christopher, paper mill 
of, III, 117. 

Leverett, President (of Harvard), 12. 

Lexington, fight at, 114, 142. 

Leyden, Doctor John, quoted, 2. 

Liberty, British revenue sloop, 113, 
116. 

"Life of Trumbull," 225 note. 

"Literary Diary of Ezra Stiles, D.D., 
LL.D." quoted, 329, 330. 

Livingston, Walter, commissary of 
northern army, 203, 204. 

Long Island, battle at, 197. 



Long Island Sound patrolled, 193. 

Loudoun, Earl of, 54. 

Louisburg, capture of, 47, 49. 

Loyalist Party, 166. 

"Loyalists of American Revolution," 

79- 
Luzerne, Chevalier Anne-Cesar de la, 

minister from France to United 

States, 257; letter to Governor 

Trumbull, 263. 
Lyman, General Phineas, 40, 53; 

victory of, 52. 

Massachusetts, boundary disputes 
with Connecticut, 50-52; letter 
to Connecticut, 150; political par- 
ties in, 118; Loyalists, 166; (Tories, 
166); Provincial Congress of, 143, 
147; sends committee to Connec- 
ticut, 150. 

Mason family (in Mohegan Case), 92, 

93. 96, 97- 
Matthews, Albert, pamphlet of, 326- 

327, 328, 329, 330, 331. 
"McFingal," 5, 17. 
Meetinghouse war, 9; truce in, 23. 
Meigs, Colonel Return Jonathan, 

raid on Sag Harbor, 211. 
Middletown, convention in, 313, 316; 

lead mines in, 161, 184; sail cloth 

and cordage from, 199. 
Mitchell, Donald G., quoted, 269. 
Mohegan Case, 9, 47, 83, 91, 92-98, 

104. 
Money, value of Continental, 261. 
Moore, Hannah, 7. 
Moore, Deacon John, 7. 
Moore family, 7. 

Morgan's rifle corps at Wyoming, 236. 
Mott, Captain Edward of Preston, 

155- 

Nebuchadnezzar, ship, 56, 57. 
Neufville, John de, and Sons, of 
Amsterdam, 274, 275, 304. 



356 



INDEX 



Newcastle-on-Tyne, 4. 

New Haven, raid on, 249-250, 251. 

New London, 238; Arnold's expedi- 
tion against, 280; relief of inhabi- 
tants, 283. 

New London Gazette, 77, 127. 

Newton, resolution of, 136. 

New York, military operations in, 
183, 194, 197; political parties in, 
118-119. 

Niles, Robert, captain of the Spy, 
231-232. 

Norwalk, raid on, 249, 250-251, 252. 

Norwich, 121; attitude towards Port 
Bill, 121. 

"Observations on the Several 
Commanders of the Ship Con- 
necticut," ballad, 88-89. 

Occum, Samson, Indian preacher, 62, 
96. 

Ogden, Captain Amos, 100. 

Oliver, Andrew, 4, 17. 

Oliver, Peter, Chief Justice of Massa- 
chusetts, 17. 

Oliver Cromwell, warship, 241. 

Oriskany, battle of, 212. 

Otis, James, 82. 

Oyster Bay, 180. 

Pabodie, Priscilla, 26. 

Pabodie, William, 25. 

Parliament, British, 112; colonial 
policy of, 74-75; oppressive mea- 
sures, 118; passes bill abolishing 
taxes, 230. 

Parsons, Reverend Joseph, 8. 

Parsons, General Samuel, 158, 251. 

Patterson, Justice, brutality against 
Connecticut settlers, 296-297. 

Penn, William, heirs of, 98-99, 102. 

Pennamite Wars (in Wyoming Valley), 
99, TOO, loi, 103. 

Pennsylvania troops, outrages of, 
296-297. 



Pepperrell, General, made baronet, 
48. 

Pequot War, Lion Gardiner's account 
of, 98. 

Peters, Reverend Samuel, 324; action 
on Port Bill, 125-126; case of, 
125-128, 129, 131; flees to England, 
129; published "History of Jona- 
than Trumbull," 128, 129; visited 
by Windham mobs, 126-129. 

Philadelphia, occupation by British, 
212. 

Philagrammatican Library at Leb- 
anon, 34. 

Philiphaugh, Scotland, i. 

Pitcher, Reverend Nathaniel, quoted, 
28. 

Pitkin, Governor, 79, 81, 87; letter 
of, 106; letter to, 105-106. 

Political Magazine, 129, 324. 

Porter, Colonel Elisha, 148. 

Princeton, battle of, 207. 

Providence, Rhode Island^ 237. 

Provincial Congress of New York, 
authority of, 180-181. 

Putnam General Israel, 142, 147- 
148, 203; at battle of Long Island, 
197; famous ride to Stratford, 249; 
promoted, 159. 

QuiNCY, Sr., Josiah, 18. 
Quintard, Isaac (Tory, of Stamford), 
I3S- 

"Resolves of the Town of 
Hebron," 127. 

Reynolds, Sir Joshua, 274. 

Rhode Island, famine in, 259; poli- 
tical parties in, 118. 

Ridgefield, Connecticut, fight at, 
136, 210; vote of, 136. 

Rivington, James, paper of, sup- 
pressed, 166-167. 

Robinson, Faith, 60; ancestry, 25-26; 
death, 266; character, 28-29, 178, 



INDEX 



357 



Robinson, Faith (continued) 

266; father of, 27-28; inscription 
on tombstone, 268; marriage to 
Governor Trumbull, 5, 25; mother 
of, 26, 28. 

Robinson, John, 26; character of, 27. 

Rochanibeau, General, at Weathers- 
field conference, 277; reception to, 
270. 

Rowley, Massachusetts, 4. 

Rule Water, Scotland, i. 

Sag Harbor, raid on, 211. 

Salisbury iron mine, 117, 199. 

Saltonstall, Colonel Gurdon, 55, 56. 

San Jose y Santa Elena, Case of, 55. 

San Juan, Don Jose Miguel de, 56, 57. 

Saybrook, man-of-war built at, 184. 

Schuyler, General, authority of, 203; 
correspondence with Governor 
Trumbull, 198-199, 200-201, 201- 
202, 205; demands on Governor 
Trumbull, 198; Gates' scheming 
against, 200, 203, 204; local 
jealousy of, 200, 201, 206; position 
of, 208; relations with Governor 
Trumbull, 198, 204, 205; super- 
seded, 212. 

Seabury, Bishop Samuel, 108, 166. 

Sears, Isaac, expedition to suppress 
The Gazette, 166-167. 

Shark, row-galley built at Norwich, 
184, 193. 

Shaw, Nathaniel, of New London, 
116. 

Sherman, Roger, 312; delegate to 
Continental Congress, 131; re- 
organizes Treasury Department, 
244; secures ammunition, 134. 

Shirley, Governor, of Massachusetts, 
scheme to capture Louisburg, 47, 
48-49. 

Simsbury, 5, 6, 7. 

Somers, Massachusetts, 50, 51. 

" Sons of Liberty," jS, 88. 



Spain, war with, 35, 36. 

Sparrow, Samuel, London merchant, 
64. 

Spencer, General Joseph, 158, 166; 
degraded by Congress, 159; letter 
to Governor Trumbull, 123-124; 
ordered to New London, 282. 

Springfield, Massachusetts, 52. 

Spy, schooner, carries treaty to 
France, 231-232. 

Stamp Act, disturbances concerning, 
70, 76-80; pamphlet about, 76. 

Steele, Judge Thomas, 17. 

Steuben, Baron, calls for arms, 265. 

Stewart, Duncan, Collector of Cus- 
toms, 75, 82, 83, 106, 109. 

Stiles, President (Yale), 326, 330, 331; 
asks for flour, 248; correspondence 
with Governor Trumbull, 325. 

Suffield, 5; transferred to Massa- 
chusetts, 50, 51. 

Sullivan, General, in Rhode Island 
campaign, 237, 238, 239. 

Sullivan's Indian campaign, 236. 

Susquehanna Case, 91, 98-103, 104, 
23s. 237. 294-295. 

Ternay, Admiral, reception to, 270. 

Thompson, Benjamin (Count Rum- 
ford), 273. 

Throop, William, 25. 

Tisdale, Nathan, school of, 61. 

Tories, 166; in Wyoming Massacre, 
236; treatment of, 121, 135. 

Town meetings begin, 121. 

Townshend revenue acts, 106, 117. 

Treaty of Peace (England and 
United States), 303-304. 

Trenton, battle of, 207, 208. 

Triton, man-of-war, 57. 

Trowbridge, Edmund, Judge of Su- 
perior Court of Massachusetts, 16- 
17- 

Trumble, Fitch and Trumble, 64-65; 
firm dissolved, 70. 



358 



INDEX 



Trumbull, Rev, Benjamin (historian), 

5, 257. 

Trumbull, Benoni, 5. 

Trumbull, David (brother of Govern- 
or Trumbull), death of, 37. 

Trumbull, David (son of Governor 
Trumbull), 30, 60; appointed to 
provide barracks, 268; education, 
61; in Windham mobs, 128; posi- 
tion in Lebanon, 63; services in 
Revolution, 172-173, 184. 

Trumbull, Faith (daughter of Gov- 
ernor Trumbull), 30; death of, 176; 
married General Jedediah Hunting- 
ton, 30, 176. 

Trumbull, Faith Robinson (wife of 
Governor Trumbull). See Robin- 
son. 

Trumbull, Doctor J. Hammond, 3; 
quoted, 125, 128. 

Trumbull, John, first American, 4, 5. 

Trumbull, John (lawyer-poet), 5. 

Trumbull, Colonel John (son of 
Governor Trumbull), 29, 30; aide 
to General Sullivan, 239; arrested 
in London, 273-274; attempts to 
negotiate loan, 275; autobiography 
quoted, 61, 70-77, 239, 273, 275- 
276; birth, 33, 60; career, 176, 
241; charter member of the Cincin- 
nati, 303; embarks for home, 275; 
encouraged by Benjamin West, 175; 
goes to London, 175; important 
services, 174-175; in commissary 
department, 275; military life, 
174-175; paintings, 176; relations 
with General Schuyler, 203, 205; 
released from arrest and goes to 
Amsterdam, 274; resumes career 
as artist, 275; serious illness, 275; 
taste for drawing, 173-174. 

Trumbull, Jonathan, Governor, ac- 
quaintance with Frenchmen, 269- 
270; activity in Revolution, 134, 
182, 184, 194; address to General 



Assembly quoted, 220-221, 291-293, 
304-312; adjustment of ecclesias- 
tical affairs, 43; admiration of 
Pitt and Wolfe, 40; ancestry, 1-8; 
appearance, 33, 130-13 i; ap- 
pointed Justice of Peace, 34; ap- 
pointed to special committee, 33, 
34; arrest of son John, 273-274; 
at Danbury, 278, 279; attendance 
at General Assembly, 222; ballad 
about, 87-89; becomes merchant 
farmer, 21; birth, 8; boyhood, 
9-1 1; business ventures, 38, 64- 
72, 81; cares and responsibilities, 
198; character, 3-4, 38, 39, 219, 
220; Chief Justice of Superior 
Courts, 38; Chief Naval Officer of 
Connecticut, 152; children, 29, 30; 
chosen profession, 325; clash with 
Governor Fitch, 78-79; classmates, 
15-18; comfort in private life, 333; 
commissioned Lieutenant Colonel, 
34, Lieutenant in Troop of Horse, 
25; commissioner on Spanish ship 
controversy, 56-57, on boundary 
committee, 51; condemns violence, 
124, 135; condolences to, 207, 267; 
correspondence with Baron Van der 
Capellan, 256, 257, with Connec- 
ticut delegates, 244, 245-246, 260, 
with Deane (Silas), 245-246, 287- 
288, with Huntington (Samuel), 
260, with Laurens (Henry), 233- 
234, 237, 240, 244, with Schuyler 
(General), 198-199, 200-201, 201- 
202, 205, with Tryon (Governor), 
227-230, with Washington (Gen- 
eral), 159, 160-161, 162-165, 168- 
169, 181, 182-183, 193. I9S> 196. 
207-208, 209-210, 212, 218-219, 
224, 225, 232-233, 236, 239, 259, 
260-261, 264, 267, 276-277, 278, 
285-286, 301-302, 320-322; death 
of, 334; death of father, 59, 60; 
death of mother, 91; death of son 



INDEX 



359 



Trumbull, Jonathan, Gov. (.continued) 
Joseph, 233, 235, 237; death of 
wife, 266; declines appointment to 
London, 58; declines call to Col- 
chester church, 21; degrees re- 
ceived, 325-326; delicate situation 
regarding Doctor Johnson, 252, 
253; delegate to General As- 
sembly, 24, 25, 32, to Stamp Act 
Congress, 76, to Massachusetts, 48; 
demands on, 264-265; Deputy 
Governor, 38, 79, 81; diplomacy, 
199; disapproves of title, 219-221; 
documents left, 245; draws first 
bill, 45-46; education, 9-10, 12-13; 
effect on political turmoil, 316; 
elected Assistant, 38, governor, 
39, 72, 294, Speaker of House of 
Representatives, 34, 38; end of 
public record, 319; enters Harvard, 
11; financial affairs, 318, 270-271, 
304 {see also business ventures); 
first firm, 64; foreign connections, 
64, 65, 69, 77; funeral sermon, 
quoted, 334, 335-336; graduates 
from Harvard, 15; health, 222, 
224, 227, 333, 334; honorary 
member of the Cincinnati, 303; 
hopefulness, 266; ingratitude of 
public toward, 288-290; inheri- 
tance, 60; interest in home in- 
dustries, 117; interest in Lebanon, 
62-63; journals, 32; Judge of 
Probate, 38; Judge of Windham 
County Court, 38; known as 
"rebel governor," 324, 331; last 
year of office, 303; letters to credi- 
tors, 71, to Earl of Dartmouth, 
138-141, 144, to Gage (General), 
144-147, to Huntington (General), 
176-177, to General Assembly, 
58-59, to Johnson (William Sam- 
uel), 84-85, 107, 109-110, III, 
to Lane, Son and Frazier, 324-325 
{see also correspondence), to Pro- 



vincial Congress of Massachusetts, 
151; legislative duties, 37; licensed 
to preach, 20; loans manuscripts to 
Chevalier de Luzerne, 257; marriage 
to Faith Robinson, 25; message to 
General Assembly, 222, 224; mili- 
tary service, 41; on Governor's 
Council, 36; on war commissions, 
53-54; opinion of Washington, 
218; orders detention of vessels, 
193, 194, 195-197; plans to write his- 
tory of Revolution, 257; political 
duties, 42-43; political movement 
against, 288-290; political prin- 
ciples, 18-19; preparation for min- 
istry, 19; preparation for war, 134- 
135; prepares statement for Baron 
Van der Capellan, 256, statement 
of Peters Case, 131; presents 
accounts to General Assembly, 3 19; 
memorial to Congress, 233-234; 
price set on head, 323; proclama- 
tion of, 186-191, 194; promotes 
library in Lebanon, 34; quoted, 
114-115, 117, 278, 284; receives 
news of Lexington fight, 142, news 
of surrender of Cornwallis, 283; 
recommends Bushnell to Washing- 
ton, 243; records of, 339; refuses 
to grant Writs of Assistance, 82-85; 
regiment of, 40; relations with 
General Schuyler, 198-204, 205, 
with General Washington, 162, 165; 
322; religious spirit, 14; reply to 
General Committee of New York, 
167; reports from son Jonathan, 
283; requests Continental troops 
for Connecticut, 211; retires from 
public life, 316, 317; retrospect on 
personal sacrifices during Revolu- 
tion, 323; reviews Susquehanna 
Case, 295; revision of laws, 44; 
salary unpaid, 318-319; Scotch 
characteristics, 4; second firm, 
64-65, 70; sends copy of ratified 



36o 



INDEX 



Trumbull, Jonathan, Gov. {continued) 
treaty to France, 231; sends troops 
to New London and Groton, 283 
sensitiveness, 162; services of 
family in Revolution, 170-178; 
settlement of son's estate, 233-234; 
solicitous about Articles of Con- 
federation, 244; story against, 290- 
291; strengthens defences of New 
London, 248, 251; subsistence 
during Revolution, 319; supreme 
period of career, 133-134; threats 
of personal violence against, 278; 
title of "Brother Jonathan," 326- 
332; treatment of private com- 
plaints, 122-123; tribute from 
General Assembly, 318; troop 
contracts, 66; unsuccessful in pro- 
curing foreign loan, 275; urges 
enlistments, 212, stable currency, 
260; views on officers' half pay, 
300, on relations with England, 
107-1115, 117, 118, 119; visit from 
a stranger, 324; Washington's 
testimonial to, 337-338. 

Trumbull, Jonathan (son of Governor 
Trumbull), 29; administration ot 
brother's estate, 233-234, 244; aide 
to Washington, 172; at Harvard, 
61; birth, 37; charter member of 
the Cincinnati, 303; Comptroller 
of Treasury, 172, 244; Deputy 
Governor of Connecticut, 172; 
Governor of Connecticut, 172; 
letters to father, 216-217, 283-284; 
married Eunice Backus, 30, 60; 
Paymaster in Northern Department 
of Continental Army, 176, 216, 219; 
relations with General Schuyler, 
203, 205; representative and sena- 
tor from Connecticut, 172; secre- 
tary to General Washington, 283. 

Trumbull, Joseph (brother of Gov- 
ernor Trumbull), birth, 8; death, 
8, 21. 



Trumbull, Joseph (father of Gover- 
nor Trumbull), 5; birth and death 
of son Joseph, 8; buys homestead, 
8; death, 59; marries Hannah 
Higley, 5; quartermaster of Wind- 
ham Troop, 22; removal to Leb- 
anon, 7, to Simsbury, 5. 

Trumbull, Joseph (son of Governor 
Trumbull), 29, 60, 106; appointed 
commissary general, 152, 171; Con- 
gress sustains action of, 204; cor- 
respondence with General Gates, 
204, with General Schuyler, 203- 
204; death, 172, 233, 235, 237; 
delegate to First Continental Con- 
gress, 132; difficulties as commis- 
sary, 171-172; engages to build 
sloop, 68, 69-70; enters father's 
firm, 65; first visit to London, 73; 
in London, 65, 66-69, 72; inscrip- 
tion on tombstone, 172; letter to 
father, 69 note; letters quoted, 
67-68, 74, 75; marries Amelia 
Dyer, 29, 233; member of "Com- 
mittee of Correspondence," 118; 
resigns from commissary, 227; 
secretary at Norwich, 121; settle- 
ment of estate, 233-234; services 
commended by Congress, 234; 
urges purchase of ammunition, 

134- 

Trumbull, Mary (daughter of Gov- 
ernor Trumbull), married to William 
Williams, 30, 60, 177. 

Trumbull family, clan of, 2; coat of 
arms, i; connection with Alden 
family, 5; founder of, i; in America 
4-8, 29-30, 60; services in Revo- 
lution, 170-178; tomb in Lebanon, 
338-339- 

Trumbull name, derivation of, 1-2, 3. 

"Trumbull Papers," 89, 126. 

Tryon, Governor William, Tory, 118- 
1 19; correspondence with Governor 
Trumbull, 227-230, 248; force of, 



INDEX 



361 



Tryon, Governor William {continued) 
249; invasion of Connecticut, 210, 
211; raid on Connecticut towns, 
249-250, 252. 

Underhill, "Lord" Nathaniel, 

166. 
University of Edinburgh, 326. 

Valley Forge, army at, 225, 226; 

situation at, 225, 227; sufferings at, 

299. 
"Voyages dans I'Amerique septen- 

trionale," 257. 

Wadsworth, Jeremiah (President of 
Harvard), 12; appointed commis- 
sary, 226, 227; letter to Governor 
Trumbull, 247. 

Wales, Nathaniel, Jr., 156. 

Wanton, Governor Joseph (Tory), 
118. 

Waterbury, Colonel, 180. 

Ward, General Andrew, 180; at New 
Haven, 250 

Ward, General Artemas, Commander 
in chief, 158-159. 

War Office in Lebanon, 156, 157. 

War of Revolution, 36; darkest days 
of, 194, 266; lack of food in, 247; 
needs of army in, 184, 259; number 
of forces in New York in, 195-196; 
scarcity of powder in, 182-183; 
threatened, 112, 116; twofold strife 
in, 118. 

Warwick patent lost, 95, loi. 

Washington, George, address to gov- 
ernors, 301, 312; asks for men 
and provisions, 180, 265, 273; at 
Weathersfield conference, 277; com- 
ments on Governor Trumbull's 
farewell address, 315-316; corre- 
spondence with Governor Trum- 
bull, 159, 160-161, 162-165, 168- 
169, 181, 182-183, 193, 195, 196, 



207-208, 209-210, 212, 218-219, 
224, 225, 232, 233, 236, 239, 259, 
260-261, 264, 267, 276-277, 278, 
285-286, 301-302, 320-322; goes 
to New York, 183; in southern 
campaign, 212; intrigue against, 
213-219; issues circular letter, 277; 
meets Governor Trumbull, 183- 
184; member of the Cincinnati, 
303; orders reinforcements to Gen- 
eral Wolcott, 251; refuses troops 
to Governor Trumbull, 211; re- 
treat through New Jersey, 207; 
urges reinforcements for army, 
209-210. 

Weathersfield conference held, 277- 
278. 

Welles, Reverend Samuel, tutor to 
Governor Trumbull, 10; anecdote 
of, lo-ii. 

West, Benjamin (painter), 175, 274. 

West, Ebenezer, defeats Governor 
Trumbull, 24-25. 

Western Reserve, 295. 

Westmoreland County, 235; forming 
of, 103, 119. 

Wheelock, Eleazer, founder of Dart- 
mouth, 35, 62. 

Whiting, row-galley, 192. 

Whitnell, Captain, 57. 

Willard, Colonel Abijah, treatment 
of, 123. 

Williams, Elisha, 48. 

Williams, William (son-in-law of 
Governor Trumbull), 66, 156, 157; 
character of, 177; letter to Gov- 
ernor Trumbull, 177, 217; marries 
Mary Trumbull, 30, 60, 177; 
married life, 178. 

Williams, Reverend Solomon, tutor 
to Governor Trumbull, 19, 24; 
controversies with Doctor Coggs- 
well and Doctor Edwards, Sr., 19. 

Williams, Trumble and Pitkin (firm 
name), 64, 66. 



362 



INDEX 



"Windham mobs," 126-129. 
Windham, attitude towards Port 

Bill, 121. 
Windsor, 6, 7. 

Winthrop, John, journal of, 98. 
Wiswall, Hannah, 26. 
Wiswall, Reverend Ichabod, 26. 
Wolcott, Erastus, 143; ambassador 

to General Gage, 147. 
Wolcott, General Oliver, 252, 293; 

at Norwalk, 251. 
Wolcott papers, 253 note. 
Wolcott, General Roger, 44, 49, 51, 58. 
Wolcott, Roger, Jr., 56, 57. 
Woodstock, Massachusetts, 50, 51. 



Wooster, General, degraded, 159; 

death of, 210. 
Writs of Assistance, 109, 113; granted, 

41, 73, 82; refused, 82-85. 
Wyoming Massacres, 100, 235-236, 

237- 
Wyoming Valley, 99, 100, 102, 235, 

236, 29s, 296. 
Wyllys, Colonel George, loi. 

Yale College, 50, 325; early closing 
at, 248; students defend New 
Haven, 250. 

Yorktown, campaign of, 243, 279, 
280, 283, 285. 



I 



